


Morality Recommended

by frotesque



Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: F/M, Future Fic, Gen, phantom planet is loosely canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-15
Updated: 2017-11-15
Packaged: 2018-05-06 20:10:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 13
Words: 47,701
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5429207
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/frotesque/pseuds/frotesque
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Their friendship was difficult after she found out about his dual nature. Mostly because she constantly questioned him about his ghostly tendencies, and was more than willing to call out behaviors that were distinctly inhuman. It drove them apart while in high school. Which made it all the more ironic that it was what brought them back together, so many years later.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Valerie could spot a prick from a mile away.

It was a talent that she found more and more useful as she grew older. Of course, despite her ability, she had accepted the job offered to her by the Chicago branch of the Guys in White; or more specifically, offered to her by the head of said branch.

Hindsight was 20/20, and she couldn’t help but feel she should have trusted her instinct about the man back when the job was first offered. She sighed as she gently placed a framed photo of her and her father into the cardboard box on her desk. Now, thanks to her own lack of trust in her gut, she was paying for it.

“How’s it going Ms. Gray?”

What do you know? Speak of the Devil…

“Great!” Valerie replied. “I love uprooting my life to return to the one place I could live my whole life without seeing again.” Her voice was thickly laced with sarcasm as she closed up the box on her empty desk. She glanced around at the newly bare office that she would no longer be calling her own.

Ronald Penny sighed as he entered and picked up one of the boxes still on the floor. Valerie walked past, holding a box of her own and pointedly avoiding eye contact with her former boss. He caught up with her in the hallway, easily matching her strides.

“Valerie, I don’t understand why you’re so upset.” He frowned when she still didn’t acknowledge him. “This is technically a promotion.”

She froze in the middle of the pristine white hall, unconcerned with disrupting the flow of traffic. Not that anyone here would speak negatively to her. The florescent lighting accentuated the angry wrinkle of her face.

“A promotion? In what world is sending me to _Amity Park_ a promotion?” She asked, voice sharp.

Ronald frowned and gently reached out to pull her to the side so they weren’t taking up so much space. “Amity’s branch of the GiW is the largest, which you already knew. This is a huge honor. Some people here work their whole lives hoping to be transferred there.”

Valerie snorted at that and continued walking. “Right.” Ronald once again fell into step beside her. “Well, as someone who spent my whole life trying to stay away, I can’t help but be kind of upset.”

Ronald sighed. “Look, Director Hayes asked for my best. If I sent anyone but you, he’d be furious.”

Valerie rolled her eyes. “That was dirty of him, and I’m sure he knows it.” She said as they walked through the automatic doors and out to the parking lot. “He knew I was here.” She placed her box on top of her car and dug out her keys so she could pop the trunk.

When the trunk opened, Ronald placed his box inside, pushing it towards the back so she could fit the rest of her things inside. “Look, I thought it was strange too.” He moved to the side so Valerie could place her box inside as well. “My best guess is that he didn’t want anyone knowing the Red Huntress is coming back.”

“Exactly!” Valerie agreed, slamming the trunk closed. “Which is suspicious, and you know it.” She leaned against her car, crossing her arms over her chest.

“I’m sorry Val,” Ronald said, placing a hand on her shoulder, “Look, I’ve never asked you about your past, or your time at Amity. I get it. But my hands are tied on this one.”

Valerie sighed. “Yeah, I know Ron. I’m just… Not ready. I left for a reason, you know?” And that reason almost definitely had to do with a boy and a conversation she never had with him.

Ronald frowned. “I really am sorry Valerie.” He was quiet for a moment. “By the way,” His mouth twitched slightly, “Would it be too much to ask for you to get Phantom to sign something for me?”

“PENNY!” Valerie snapped. She punched his arm as he laughed, and did her best to stifle her own laughter.

He rubbed his arm where she hit him, smile still on his face. “We really are going to miss you Gray.”

“I’ll miss it here too.”

* * *

Valerie didn’t like airports.

Actually, she didn’t like crowded places in general. Crowded areas meant it would be difficult to find somewhere to change into the Red Huntress. Crowded areas also meant higher potential for civilian casualties.

She glanced down at her phone as she waited for her suitcase to appear on the baggage carousel. Director Hayes wanted her to stop by this afternoon, and had decided to send one of his agents to pick her up from the airport and bring her there immediately.

She frowned at the text, already irritated from the flight. Just her luck, her new boss was uptight, almost definitely a control freak, and probably less than considerate of basic human needs, like a long shower after a 5 hour flight.

Her bag appeared onto the carousel, and Valerie grabbed it, plopping it onto its wheels and ignoring the stares she received for her aggressive handling.

She shoved her phone into the deep pocket of her sweatpants, and stomped forward towards the pickup area. It crossed her mind for a moment that she had no idea who it was that Hayes had sent to pick her up, but she figured whoever it was would be wearing the gaudy white suit she had grown accustomed to in her time working for the GiW.

Valerie almost missed him in her search for said uniform. In fact, if he hadn’t called for her, she wouldn’t have noticed him.

After all, Danny Fenton was practically unrecognizable.

She opened gaped at the man before her. The first thing she noticed was that he was _tall_. And broad. And smiling at her and his smile is exactly how she remembers and she can’t _think_ right now.

“Valerie!” His voice breaks her out of her slight trance, and she is suddenly very aware of her current appearance. She’s wearing old sweatpants, her shirt is too big, and her hair is frizzy and matted in the back from the headrest.

“Danny?” It comes out of her mouth more as a question as he steps forward and engulfs her in a hug. She returns it almost hesitantly. She’s kind of surprised, really. The hug lasts for longer than she expected, and Danny is holding onto her tightly, like she might disappear otherwise.

He steps back after a moment, hands on her arms as he looks her up and down for a moment.

“Man Val,” He starts, smile melting into more of a smirk, “You’re so _short_.”

Her eyes twitches. Then she pulls back a fist and lands a very solid punch to his arm. He gasps in pretend pain and grabs at his arm, but Valerie can still see his smile, and she can’t help it when her own lips start twitching.

“Man Fenton,” She starts, picking up her luggage and handing it off to him, “You’re still an idiot.” She heard him laugh as he followed behind her. His much longer strides allowed him to catch up easily. They made their way through the crowded airport terminal towards the parking lot.

“Seriously Valerie, you look great!” He said, still grinning like an idiot. Valerie rolled her eyes half-heartedly.

“I look horrible right now.” She said, reaching back to try to shake out her hair a little bit. “But thanks, I guess. You don’t look so bad yourself.”

Danny shrugged at that as they walked outdoors. It was beautiful out. Sunny, but with a slight breeze that kept it from getting too hot. “Hey, give yourself some credit, it was what? A five hour flight?”

Valerie nodded as she readjusted her carry on book bag. “And the best part about it? I get to meet my new boss like this.” Danny stopped next to his car, which was blue and otherwise pretty nondescript. He didn’t take after his parents then.

“Serves him right for forcing you to come in _now_.” His voice had a hard edge to it. Valerie cocked her head in interest as he popped his trunk and placed her luggage inside.

“Is that some resentment I hear?” She asked, mouth curling up into a smirk.

Danny rolled his eyes as he shut the truck and walked to the driver’s side of the car. “Maybe. Personal opinion on him aside, it’s still kind of a dick move.” He ducked his head as he sat, and Valerie followed suit on the other side.

“You’re telling me.” She grumbled. She leaned back in her seat, eyes sliding closed. “How did you get to be so lucky anyway? I didn’t even know you worked for the Guys.”

Danny shrugged as he pulled out of the parking spot. “Well, it’s not so much working for them as working _with_ them.” Valerie stared at him for a moment after said that as he pretended he couldn’t feel her stare.

“Excuse me? As in… as in you work with them as Phantom?”

He sighed heavily, still keeping his eyes on the road. “Yeah.” He glanced at Val for a second. “Hayes was one of the Twenty.”

Valerie’s stare turned into a look of understanding. He had been there at the North Pole, when Danny had somehow saved them all and revealed his identity to the twenty humans present. They had all been sworn to secrecy, then left to somehow sit on the knowledge they now had like everything was normal. But it wasn’t, of course.

Danny shook his head. “So yeah. When he was promoted to Director he called me, talking about how it was my civic duty to ‘help him help me’. I turned him down, of course.” His hands gripped the steering wheel tighter. “I didn’t need his help. I had you, kinda. Sam, Tuck, Jazz.”

Valerie frowned at that. After she found out, she was a mess of emotions. They were friends only by the barest definition of the word, and even then there was a lot left unsaid about the situation as a whole.

“Then,” he paused for a moment, “Then Jazz graduated and left. And then we graduated. And Tucker left. And you left. And Sam… I _made_ her leave.” He shrugged. “Suddenly I needed the support.”

Valerie couldn’t help the guilt that forced its way into thoughts. “You made Sam leave?” She asked.

Danny laughed at that. “Absolutely. She was accepted to NYU. It was her dream school. I wasn’t going to hold her back.” His posture was relaxed. There was obviously no regret in that decision. Valerie shifted slightly.

“Why didn’t you go to college? I mean, the Guys in White are idiots, but they’re pretty good at what they do. Especially now that they’re getting funding. They probably could have handled it.”

Danny glanced at her again. “Maybe.” He frowned as he saw traffic ahead and began to gradually slow down. When he eased to a stop, he turned his gaze on Valerie fully. “Can I be honest with you Val? I mean… I haven’t told anyone this. Not Sam, or Tuck, or Jazz. I mean, I didn’t even realize for a while and… yeah.”

Valerie blinked in surprise. “I… Yeah, of course.” In truth, she wasn’t sure what kind of secret Danny would be willing to keep from his loved ones but absolutely willing to divulge to her, someone he hasn’t talked to in _years_. “I have to ask though… Why me?”

He smiled at that. “Because, you’re the only person I know who remembers that I’m just as much ghost as I am human.” Valerie nodded.

Their friendship was difficult after she found out about his dual nature. Mostly because she constantly questioned him about his ghostly tendencies, and was more than willing to call out behaviors that were distinctly inhuman. It drove them apart while in high school.

Danny moved the car forward a few feet before stopping and meeting her eyes once again. “So, I’m pretty sure Amity is either my lair or my obsession. Maybe both.” He shrugged. Valerie thought about it for a moment before nodding.

“It makes sense. Although,” She looked away before speaking again, “I’m a little surprised it wasn’t Sam.” She turned when she heard Danny’s laughter.

“Honestly? Me too.” He admitted.

“How are you two anyway? I imagine you at least attempted long distance.” Valerie asked.

“We broke up after a couple years of her being away.” He told her. “Believe it or not, the break up was probably the most human interaction we’ve had since the accident.” He grinned at Valerie. “No ghostly interference. No ‘I’m doing this to protect you’ nonsense. Just good old fashioned ‘we’re far away and want a chance to date other people’ type stuff.”

Valerie nodded, smiling back at him. “And how’s that been going?” She gave him a quick once over. “Pretty well, I imagine.”

Danny snorted. “Are you checking me out Valerie Gray?” He cocked an eyebrow at her as traffic continued in its stop and go rhythm. She laughed.

“Nah. Just kind of amazed that scrawny Danny Fenton grew into this.” She made an offhand gesture at his person. He laughed openly at that.

“I would have been pissed otherwise, what with all the ghost hunting. Not even to mention how jacked evil me was.”

Valerie grinned. She was glad he was comfortable talking about it, now that he was sure it would never become a reality. The first time he had ever told her about that awful alternate timeline had been far more serious an interaction. Only days after she learned of his secret did he tell her the story, the sole purpose for doing so being that he wanted her to be prepared should the worst happen.

They had made a contingency plan together. She was pretty sure that drove a wedge between them as well, especially when he told her that he had chosen her to create said plan with because he wasn’t sure Sam or Tucker or his family could do it.

Finally the traffic began to break up. “So when’s your stuff getting here?” Danny asked.

“Tomorrow afternoon, I believe.” She replied. Danny grinned at her for a moment before turning his gaze back to the road.

“Good. Because I was going to offer for you to stay at my place tonight, and that means you don’t have any better options.”

Valerie raised a brow at him, though he couldn’t see her expression. “Oh really?”

“Yes really!” He glanced at her again. “Besides, I _know_ you would like a tour of Fenton Works, and we have the whole thing to ourselves since mom and dad got a new place.”

Valerie rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah. I think you’re just lonely in that big old house.” Her tone was joking.

Danny didn’t answer immediately as he took the exit that would lead them to Amity. “Well, you’re not _wrong_.” He shook his head slightly. “It’ll be great. You, me, alcohol, and ghost hunting equipment.”

Valerie grinned at him. “What could possibly go wrong?”

* * *

The Amity branch of the GiW was located at the very edge of the town, far enough to be generally ignored, and close enough for quick response should Phantom need it. It was a plain looking building. Unimpressive, easily overlooked.

The hallways stretched out in the same pattern of every other headquarters, and though Valerie did follow Danny towards Hayes’ office, she was almost certain she could have made it there herself. She had half-heartedly pulled her hair up into a ponytail in the car and applied fresh deodorant in an attempt to seem slightly less disheveled.

Danny led her to the office, it was exactly where she thought it would be, and knocked on the door.

“Come in.” Said a voice from the other side of the door. Valerie fixed her face into a mask of professionalism as Danny opened the door. He held it for her as she walked in. He moved to join her inside when Hayes spoke. “No need Daniel. This will be short.”

Danny grumbled slightly at that, but nodded all the same. “I’ll be waiting right out here Val.”

“You’ll wait outside the building Daniel.” Hayes said, fixing Danny with a hard stare. “Wouldn’t want you overhearing.”

“You’re not my boss.” He retorted. Valerie glanced back at him, eyebrow raised in interest.

“No,” Hayes began, standing from his place behind his desk, “But this is Guys in White business. You are only a consultant, and I don’t need your opinion on this.” He gestured towards Valerie as he moved to the front of the desk and leaned against it. “Goodbye, Daniel.”

Valerie watched as his jaw clenched in anger. His eyes were bright, but not quite glowing. Finally she spoke. “Danny,” He turned his gaze to her, “It’s fine, I’ll meet you outside.”

He looked from her to Hayes before nodding sharply and exiting. Hayes stared at Valerie and said nothing. She quickly grew uncomfortable.

“So…”

“My apologies Huntress,” Hayes spoke, “Daniel has eerily quiet footsteps, so I have to wait for a moment to make sure he’s gone. Of course, I’m sure you’ve noticed this… quirk of his.”

Valerie nodded. The man stood straight, adjusting his suit jacket so it fell properly before offering Valerie his hand.

“Allow me to formally introduce myself. William Hayes.”

She shook his large hand as she took him in. He was terribly broad, but not as tall as Danny. His dark skin was smooth and his head bald. Everything about him was pristine, and Valerie found herself feeling even more inadequate.

“Valerie Gray. I apologize for my appearance.” She wasn’t really that concerned, after all, it was him who demanded to see her so soon.

“Nonsense. I didn’t expect you to be flying in uniform.” He smiled, it was large, and it made him look young, approachable. Valerie found herself returning the grin.

“So, what was so urgent you needed to see me so soon?” She asked, cutting to the chase. He laughed at that.

“I like that. Right to the point. I’ll do the same then.” He moved behind his desk and sat once again. “I need you to watch Phantom. You’re our… leash, if you will.”

She blinked at him a few times before schooling her face. She crossed her arms over her chest. “And why do you need that?” She asked. She raised an eyebrow. “Has he not been compliant?”

Hayes shook his head. “No worries Ms. Gray. I know you two have a past. I’m not going to ask you to hunt him down because he catches an attitude or anything like that.”

“Good,” Valerie said, gaze hard, “Because I wasn’t going to.”

Hayes sighed. “I know, Ms. Gray. I only requested you be transferred here because all of our scientists agree: his powers are expanding. Which is only concerning because he’s already easily one of the most powerful ghosts we’ve ever recorded.”

Valerie pursed her lips. “I don’t see why you’re concerned at all. I mean, Danny is working with you guys,” She remembered what she told him about Amity being his lair, “And he’s not going to hurt this town or anyone in it.”

Hayes held up a hand. “I know that. But that sentiment doesn’t extend to anywhere else.” He leaned back in his chair, meeting Valerie’s hard gaze unflinchingly. “He’s alone here Valerie. Alone and incredibly powerful. The last thing we need is for him to get cabin fever.”

“I don’t understand my objective.” She interjected. “You want me here to keep him entertained?”

“Sure.” Hayes said, throwing his hands up. “Keep him lively. Make sure his mind doesn’t wander too far into the realm of ‘it can all be mine’. Ghosts tend to get the urge to extend their territory Valerie. Daniel is not just a ghost. But he’s not just a human, either.” He leaned back into his chair. “And from what I understand, you have always remembered that.”

Valerie frowned as his words sunk in. “So… You think that me coming back, us rekindling our old friendship, will keep him satisfied?”

“Yes. We’re hoping that it makes him feel like he’s improved his lair. After all, you are a wildly talented ghost hunter. Powerful allies are always important when it comes to building great empires.” Hayes smirked.

“OK. So let’s say this works. What happens in a few more years when I’m not enough anymore?” Valerie asked, moving closer to his desk.

Hayes shrugs. “Well, that depends on whether he becomes violent or not. Valerie, I believe that you are the only one who can ground him to his humanity.” Hayes answered.

Valerie snorted. “I think you have the wrong ex-girlfriend.”

“I believe you are the only who can ground him to his humanity because you are the only one who remembers that he isn’t human. The only one who can confront that in the way it should be confronted.”

Valerie stared at him for a moment. “Fine. I don’t know if you’re right but… But I’ll try. I,” She paused, turning her gaze elsewhere in embarrassment, “I did miss him.”

Hayes grinned. “Once again, the Red Huntress is going to help save the world. How’s it feel?”

“…Good.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There was an underlying power struggle in every interaction they had. It was exhilarating. Valerie smirked out the window at the passing scenery. She knew already that she was about to have more fun than she’s had in a long time.

“So on a scale of one to ten, how willing are you to tell me exactly what he said in there?” Danny asked as Valerie walked outside the building. He was leaning against the wall, stance casual. Even so, Valerie could see the tension in his frame.

She turned towards him, cocking her hip and crossing her arms as she squinted against the sun. “Maybe a two.” She answered. He sighed and pushed off the wall, making his way towards his car. Valerie followed.

“How about the gist?” He asked as they came upon his car.

Valerie hummed in thought as he unlocked it and they both settled into their respective seats.

“How about this,” Valerie said, turning slightly to rest her elbows on the middle console and lacing her fingers together, “I’m going to be staying in Amity for some time, so the least you could do is hang out with me every once in a while.”

Danny snorted at that. “Are you telling me he brought you here for what is essentially a long playdate?”

Valerie grinned and shrugged, straightening up in her seat. “I have my own business here Danny. And I’ll always be on your side.” She looked him in his eyes, trying to convey how serious she was about this in a look. “Don’t you forget that.”

He glanced out the windshield, bottom lip held between his teeth. His gaze returned to Valerie. “I’m going to drop it because I trust you Val.” He said finally. He started the car, and right before he pulled out of the spot, he fixed her with an intense stare of his own. “Don’t you forget _that_.”

His eyes didn’t glow green. He didn’t look dangerous in any way. His muscles weren’t tensed as though he were ready for a fight. Despite all of this, Valerie could feel the threat humming in the air. It was fair, she supposed. Their game had always been a little dangerous, even after she stopped physically fighting him.

There was an underlying power struggle in every interaction they had. It was exhilarating. Valerie smirked out the window at the passing scenery. She knew already that she was about to have more fun than she’s had in a _long_ time.

XXX  


Fenton Works was delightfully familiar in a town that had grown so much since Valerie had last been there. It appeared as it always had, and Valerie couldn’t stifle a chuckle when she noticed the Fenton RV in the driveway.

“I figured you still had that thing.” She said, grin stretching across her face. Danny parked and smirked at her.

“Actually, it’s not mine. Mom and Dad still drive it.”

Valerie’s smile disappeared in an instant. “Wait… So?”

Danny’s smile was mischievous. “You didn’t _really_ think you were going to get away with not seeing them today, did you?”

Valerie groaned. Almost as if on cue, Jack and Maddie Fenton burst from the front door, clad in their usual jumpsuits.

“VALERIE!” They called in unison. She spared one more glance at Danny, who was positively _basking_ in her misery, before fixing a smile to her face.

She got out of the car. “Hey!” She called back. They rushed up to her, both pulling her in for a hug. She returned it, smile growing a little more genuine. Really, it was kind of inspiring, the way they acted as something of a single entity, perfectly in tune.

“Oh Valerie,” Maddie started, pulling away, “It’s wonderful to see you! We’ve kept up with the Red Huntress’ work, of course! You’re doing big things.” She said, positively beaming.

“I’ll say!” Jack added. He put his hands on his hips and puffed out his massive chest. “You’ve taken to our tech well. It’s been selling like hot cakes, thanks to you!”

After Danny’s reveal, the Fenton’s decided that they could be a greater help to Danny by doing something other than trying to join the fight. They started putting far more time and effort into their inventing, and if the world didn’t know they were truly brilliant before, they did after Fenton Works began producing more and more in the area of ghost containment.

They were practically a household name, and it wasn’t strange for those living in larger cities to own some manner of ghost protection, from shields to thermoses. They had apparently surprised Danny when he was 22, deciding to go build a bigger and better Fenton Works on the edge of the town and leaving the original for him, so he would continue to be close to the portal.

Valerie smiled. “I’m glad, but hey, you guys kept sending me great stuff, so it really was no problem.”

“Alright mom, dad. Valerie is exhausted and kind of smells.” He joked. “She’s moving to Amity, so you have plenty of time to bother her _later_.” Danny reminded as he pulled Valerie’s luggage from the trunk.

“Oh come on Danny!” Jack said, placing a hand on Maddie’s shoulder. “We’ve got so many ghost hunting stories to catch up on!”

Maddie placed a hand over her husband’s. “Which we can do later, Jack. Danny wants some time to catch up with her too.” She began pulling him gently towards the Fenton RV. “I left some cookies on the counter for you!” She called. Jack huffed in disappointment, but otherwise complied.

“Thanks mom!”

“Bye Mr. and Mrs. Fenton.” Valerie said, waving as they drove off, tires squealing slightly as Jack took a turn too quickly. “That wasn’t so bad.” She said to Danny as she grabbed her carry on from the front seat and followed him inside.

“Only because I begged mom to go easy on you.” He replied, closing the front door behind them. “Everything’s pretty much the same.” He said as he carried her luggage to the guest room. She followed him.

He set her suitcase on the bed in the room. “Alright, here it is.” He moved to the doorway. “I sleep right across the hall,” He pointed to the door to his room, “And you remember where the downstairs bathroom is, right?”

Valerie nodded.

“Awesome. Shower up, we have some trouble to get into.” He said. With a parting grin, he turned and walked downstairs to the basement.

XXX  


Freshly showered and clothed in some jeans and a T-shirt, Valerie made her way down to the basement, plate of cookies in hand. Danny was sitting on a stool next to a workshop table, bent over a pile of wires and various gun parts Valerie almost recognized.

“Hey,” She said, announcing her presence, “I didn’t know that you knew how to do stuff like this.” She nodded towards the parts on the table. “Or that you mom could bake.” She bit into her second cookie, placing the plate on an empty space on the table.

Danny sat up, groaning slightly as he straightened out his spine. “Yeah,” He said, glancing down at his work as he grabbed a cookie, “Mom and Dad started teaching me in high school. Said it might be useful to understand the kind of stuff that can hurt me.” He shrugged, biting into his snack.

Valerie hummed. “You know, you could probably get a mechanic’s degree in a couple years if you go in with that kind of knowledge.” She hopped up onto the other stool across the table from him.

“Why do you want me to go to school so bad?” Danny asked, tone light and genuine. Valerie shrugged and picked up a nearby wire.

“I don’t know. It’s not fair that the rest of us got to have kind of a normal college experience.” She answered, fiddling with the wire in her hand.

Danny snorted. “Maybe to you. It doesn’t bother me so much, honestly. I never liked school anyway.” He answered as he went back to his previous work.

Valerie bit her lip. “Still… Do you ever resent it?”

“Hmm?” Danny asked, slightly distracted.

“The ghost thing. All of it.”

Danny stopped what he was doing and looked up at her, then past her at the swirling green of the portal. “Sometimes.” He replied. Then he looked back at Valerie, smile on his face. “But most of the time I’m happy. Especially when I’m flying.”

She smiled back. “I understand.”

They were quiet for a moment, the only sounds coming from Danny’s continued tinkering and the gentle whirring of several machines in the lab. Valerie stood, exploring a little. She peered at the readouts of a couple of the machines, though she had no idea what they meant.

Her hands skimmed over some of the devices on one of the unoccupied worktables, coming to rest on an ectogun. She picked it up, recognizing it as one of the models that the Fentons had sent her. She made sure the safety was on before playing around with it a little, feeling the cold weight in her palms, resting her finger on the trigger and peering down the barrel.

She aimed at one of the rivets on the portal. Her gaze traveled downwards towards the opening, and she found herself entranced by the lazy swirl. She placed the weapon down and walked around the table, moving closer to the only stable entrance to the Ghost Zone.

It was strangely cold, right near the entrance. It made sense, she supposed as she moved closer and closer to the portal. She stopped when Danny made a noise of frustration.

“Alright,” He said, standing and tossing the screwdriver in his hand onto the work table, “I’m over this.” He looked towards Valerie, who had turned when he began speaking. “You up for some flying?” He asked.

Valerie nodded, and with a parting glance to the rift behind her, she followed him upstairs.

XXX  


 _Danny had a point_ , she thought. There truly wasn’t anything quite like soaring high above the town, hands gently skimming the clouds and wind blowing the hair from her face. She certainly never regretted the situations that led her to becoming the Red Huntress, and _this_ was one of the main reasons.

Danny had gotten faster, she noticed. He didn’t bother asking for a race he knew he would win. He would shoot ahead of her, almost out of her line of sight in an instant, then pause for a moment, allowing her to catch up slightly before twisting up through the air and literally flying circles around her.

She found herself laughing along with him, mesmerized by his grace and energized by his enthusiasm. Occasionally she would dip suddenly or crouch so she could grab onto her board before performing dizzying rolls and loops.

Most of the time though, Valerie just watched. While she was glad for Danny’s jovial spirit, she couldn’t help the wariness that crept within her. Hayes hadn’t at all been exaggerating when he said Danny’s powers had expanded.

Speed aside, he absolutely radiated power, his glow extending further than she ever remembered. His eyes were piercing before, but they burned a special kind of fire now. They were light, when he glanced at her, full of trust and joy, but Valerie refused to ignore the silent threat within them, the promise that his core was bright and rippling with strength.

It was intoxicating. There was a human instinct, somewhere deep inside that told her she should be afraid. She acknowledged it. Then she decided she wasn’t going to be intimidated by him.

Valerie Gray could handle Danny Fenton. It’s why she was here.

“C’mon,” Danny called over the wind that whipped past them, “I know the perfect place.” His words would have been lost if not for Valerie’s special “hearing aids”; designed by the Fentons to dilute wind noise and enhance everything else, giving her the ability to keep an ear out for danger even at high speeds.

She nodded in response, and angled her body to push her sled forward even faster. Danny made sure not to get too far ahead of her, managing to more or less match her pace. Finally he slowed down, and the duo stopped at the peak of the large hill that overlooked Amity. Valerie hovered a few feet off the ground before disengaging her suit.

The nanoparticles slid over her skin at the command, and rearranged themselves back into the soles of her shoes, shrinking down to one-fifth their size to fit. She absorbed the impact with the grace of someone who’s done it a million times.

Danny powered down as well, he too landing easily. They stood next to each other, silent as they observed the town they had spent so much of their lives protecting.

“Perspective.” He mumbled as he plopped down onto the grass. He pulled a silver flask from his pocket, looking at Valerie and waving it gently, grin plastered across his face. She laughed and joined him on the ground.

“What?” She asked, hoping for clarification. Danny took a sip from the flask before passing it to Valerie.

“Looking at Amity like this. It gives what we do perspective, don’t you think?” He answered. She drank from the flask, pleasantly surprised by the smooth whiskey. She hummed in agreement.

“I get it.” She passed the flask back. “All the lights. There’s a lot of people there. Trying to make a life.”

“And we have to make sure they get the chance.” He finished, taking another sip. He leaned back onto his elbows, long legs stretching out before him. “What an honor.” He said, tone light and joking.

Valerie took the flask and drank again, grinning when she began to feel the warmth pooling in her chest. “What’s with all the superhero talk?” She asked.

Danny shrugged, eyes still on the skyline. “You asked earlier if I regret it. I really don’t, usually. Something about being out here though… It makes me proud.”

Valerie hummed, taking another sip. “Are you happy here?” She asked. The question was dangerously double – edged, in her opinion. Danny thought of her as a friend, and he’d likely think nothing much of it. And really, Valerie _wanted_ to know in the friendly way.

But she also wanted to know in the “threat – neutralizer” way. She’d deal with her guilt over that later, she supposed.

Danny looked at her. “Yeah.” He answered after a moment. He took a long drink from the flask. “I’m lonely, though.” He admitted.

She hummed before lying down. “You’re not alone now.” She said, smiling at him. “And I don’t doubt that Sam and Tucker talk to you often.”

Danny looked down at her, returning the smile. “Of course. I’m glad you’re here.” His gaze became hard. “Even though the circumstances could have been less annoying.”

“What did he do to you? It’s obvious you don’t like Hayes at all.”

Danny huffed, allowing himself to fall flat onto his back. “I just don’t like that I was backed against a wall when it comes to him. I mean, he knows my secret, and he knows I was in over my head when everyone moved away. It didn’t really feel like I had a choice.”

Guilt stabbed at Valerie again, though she knew she really had no reason to feel bad. No one had told Danny he had to forgo college and stay behind to continue fighting. She huffed.

“You know what? No more mopey talk.” She said, sitting up and looking down at her companion. “I think we need to have some good, old – fashioned, college level stupid fun.”

Danny laughed at that, sitting up as well. “Alright,” He agreed, “And how do we go about doing that?”

XXX

Danny was drunk. More drunk than he had ever been in his life. And it was all thanks to one Valerie Gray, who was currently in her pajamas, handle of vodka in one hand. She had introduced him to all manner of drinking game, including a few he was almost sure was intended for more than two people.

Eventually, she had decided to take him up on his offer for an exclusive tour of what was the official Fenton Works, consisting of the large metal addition to the top of his building. She gasped when she noticed the thick black mats on the ground upon entering.

“No way!” She exclaimed. Danny laughed when she set the bottle on the ground next to the mat before stepping onto, already bouncing on her toes. He knew she’d appreciate seeing the upper lab of Fenton Works. 

“Yup. ‘S mom’s.” He slurred, moving towards her and joining her on the mat. She dropped into a stance, only a little wobbly, though he knew she was about as far gone as he was.

“Let’s fight!” She said, eyes bright despite being very glassy. He laughed at that, taking in her appearance. Her shirt was a couple sizes too big and her sleep pants were pink with little sheep on them. Despite that, she glared at him, clearly making an effort to seem intimidating.

With a slight shrug and only a mild stagger, he too adopted a stance. His mom had taught him the basics of the basics, jumping between a few different styles of martial arts to make sure she was only teaching him moves would be useful for him.

Something in the back of his mind reminded him that Valerie was a black belt in at least two martial arts, and he doubted alcohol would do much to protect him from her ability. They stared for a moment before Valerie, fast as ever, struck.

Danny barely dodged her punch, stumbling heavily with the movement. Valerie laughed at that, and he joined in before half-heartedly crouching down and attempting to trip her by sweeping his leg under hers. She jumped over successfully, but stumbled hard on the landing before falling gently onto the mat.

They burst into laughter again, and Danny dropped the rest of the way onto the ground so they were lying side by side. They adjusted after a moment until they were both on their backs, looking up at the skylight. They were breathing heavily, from both the mild exertion and the laughter.

Danny sighed, eyes never leaving the stars above. “Thank you for coming home.” He whispered.

Valerie shook her head rapidly, though it mad her incredibly dizzy to do so. “Don’t thank me.” She said, turning to look at him.

He met her gaze. “Why not?” He asked. His mouth stretched into a lazy smile. “I think you saved my life.” He whispered, as if someone else might have been there to hear him.

Valerie’s brows furrowed. “Because I didn’t _want_ to come here. And what do you mean saved your life?”

Danny frowned at that. “You didn’t want to see me?” He asked. Valerie winced at his words. The strange greenish lighting of the room casting odd shadows on his face.

“Of course I wanted to see you Danny.” She said, reaching over to place a hand on his cheek. He felt clammy, and his eyes held a very complete sadness. It made her heart break. “How did I save your life?” She asked again.

Were Danny not emboldened by the liquor in his system, she doubted he would have told her. “I think Hayes was going to kill me.” He said. After a moment he snorted, moving his face away from Valerie’s hand to look back up at the stars. “Have me killed.”

“Danny…” Valerie breathed in shock.

He shook his head before staring at her. “He’s so afraid of me Val,” He swallowed thickly, “I don’t know why. It’s not like I’ve done anything to him.” He mumbled.

“Oh Danny.” She said, opening her arms. He responded immediately, flipping over and falling into her embrace. He rested his head on her chest, hands reaching around and underneath to rest on her shoulder blades and pull her closer to him.

She wrapped her arms around him, fingers gently running through his dark hair. “I won’t let them.” She promised, voice steely as she looked up through the skylight. “I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you safe.”

Danny shook softly with dark laughter. “Valerie,” He mumbled, gently raising himself so he could look down at her, “I’m not scared of them. They can’t kill me.” His eyes flashed green. “But I don’t want to have to stop them.” He lowered himself back down. “I can feel it Val. I’m s _trong_.”

Valerie bit her lip at that. She relaxed quickly, however. He had just told her he had no desire to use his power maliciously. “We’ll figure this out Danny.” She promised, squeezing him gently. “I know you’re not dangerous. I’ll get them to back off, tell them I can handle you.”

He rolled over at that, sitting up and staring down at her. “I knew that’s why they made you come here. To keep an eye on me.”

Valerie frowned. “I didn’t know until I got here Danny, I swear.” Nervousness crept up on her as she waited for his reaction. He sighed heavily.

“I know, Valerie. It’s ok.” He looked away, eyes focusing on one of the consoles. “Don’t hate me but… I’m glad.”

She sat up, not too surprised to hear it. She placed a hand on his shoulder. “I don’t.” She whispered. “We’ll figure this out.” She repeated.

Danny didn’t respond, but did seem to relax under her touch.


	3. Chapter 3

Danny was shrouded in secrecy. Valerie didn't know if it was because he had spent some of his most formative years hiding a double life or if he had always been this way. Back when they had discussed the terms of their friendship, a meeting that was too business – like to feel very  _friendly_ , Danny agreed that he needed to be as open and clear about himself and his powers as possible. Together, they formed their contingency plan.

In retrospect, the whole situation had reeked of raw fear and a lack of trust that made them perhaps a little too thorough. No one could blame them though, really. The incident with Danny's evil future self was incredibly fresh on his mind and Valerie was still reeling from the revelation that somehow also felt like a betrayal.

As the years passed and everything felt less and less like an open wound, they both got more relaxed about the deal, and though Danny didn't actively hide anything from her, he wasn't calling her up at odd times in the night, going on about this or that new ability anymore.

She remembered sort of missing it though. Danny, by nature, was the upbeat sort (save for his rough depressive stint throughout his freshman year) and even though the calls were meant to be at least somewhat serious, he would babble excitedly about his new found skill. Valerie found the raw passion in his voice so incredibly endearing, she could probably listen to him go on for hours.

As the morning caught up with her sluggish brain upon her awakening, the long discussions they had the day before held a strange new weight in her heart. Those talks hadn't felt like taking stock to better make plans to stop him. They felt like trust. Like secrets you only told your best friend at slumber parties.

Valerie groaned as she sat up. Her head was pounding, a not so gentle reminder of her questionable choices last night. She stood and grabbed her toiletry bag from its place at the foot of the bed. As she shuffled towards the bathroom down the hall, she couldn't help but hear Danny downstairs, singing freely and off key from the kitchen.

She smiled fondly, and she suddenly felt sad that she hadn't been ready to be Danny's friend when they were younger, as opposed to his keeper. As she shut the bathroom door behind her, she made a silent promise to herself that things would be different this time around.

* * *

Valerie didn't feel particularly better after washing up and changing into her Guys in White uniform. As she walked into the kitchen, she found herself highly aware and slightly irritated that Danny had apparently been coherent enough last night to change into his ghost form and burn the alcohol from his system before going to bed. Valerie was not so lucky.

Danny, who was busy at the stove making pancakes, only laughed for a minute or two at the look Valerie gave him upon entering the brightly lit kitchen before he gently pulled Valerie towards him. She stumbled over, bumping into him slightly. She didn't even have time to glare for his "rough" treatment before he lifted them slightly off the ground and turned them both intangible.

Intangibility wasn't Valerie's favorite sensation. It felt like ice cold water shooting through her veins, and it made her chest feel heavy. With that being said, the moment Danny brought them back to full tangibility, she noticed a stark difference in how she felt. Her hangover was still present, but at least a hundred times more bearable than before. She blinked a couple times before staring at her friend in shock.

"How did you…?"

He shrugged nonchalantly before turning back to his previous action of flipping pancakes. "Yeah, like I said, alcohol reacts weird with ectoplasm."

Valerie drew back, a little concerned. "Wait? You put ectoplasm in my system?" She really hadn't meant for it to sound accusatory, but the frown that twitched Danny's lips told her it definitely did.

"No, Val. Some of the alcohol evaporated out of your bloodstream when I made you intangible. That's all." His tone was a little short, though it sounded like he too was trying not to sound confrontational. He placed a pancake onto the plate he had set out on the counter before looking at her again. "Ectoplasm isn't poisonous, per se, but it isn't healthy for humans to have it in their bloodstream."

Valerie blushed, thoroughly embarrassed. Danny still stared, not quite enjoying her discomfort, but not overly concerned about it. His eyes were blue, she noticed, and yet they still seemed to glow. "I'm sorry. I know you wouldn't do anything to hurt me. I'm just tired and in a mood." The apology felt strange on Valerie's tongue.

She didn't apologize for her actions very often, especially when it came to Danny's ghost half; but she was adamant about trying to be a friend to him first. Friends apologized.

Danny blinked in shock for a moment at her words before giving her a wide smile. Valerie bit back a comment about not seeming so surprised. He shook his head slightly, fond grin still in place, before turning to the stove to take the rest of the pancakes out of the pan and cutting the stove off. "Don't worry about it. It's a fair question, I guess." He placed their plates down on the table across from each other and sat at his. Valerie took her seat as well. "Just so you know though, everyone I spend prolonged periods of time with have traces of ectoplasm on them. Mostly just on the surface of your skin though."

Valerie nodded and reached to grab the syrup. "Makes sense." She put a generous amount on her food before passing the bottle to Danny. "You're not stupid, you'd tell me something I needed to know."

Danny smirked at her. "It sounds like you're trying to convince yourself of that." He pointed out as he too covered his breakfast in syrup. Valerie hummed at that. It was a fair assessment, though said in jest.

"I do trust you Danny." She reiterated. "I want to. And part of that means I can ask you tough questions and you'll be honest." She bit into a pancake, and gave him a quick thumbs up as she chewed. He was a decent cook himself. Or at least he knew how to make simple breakfast foods. She wasn't complaining, either way.

Danny chewed on his bottom lip for a moment at that. "That's… that's really fair." He fidgeted when Valerie looked up at him with confusion at his sudden change in tone. He glanced back at her and began to explain himself. "Ghosts feed off of negative emotion. Fear. Embarrassment. Anger."

Valerie swallowed and pursed her lips at the non-sequitur. She rolled with it, figuring he'd get to the point momentarily. "I thought only ghosts like Spectra did that?"

Danny shrugged and looked down at his plate. "She just did it in a more direct way. It's why ghosts scare people. It makes them stronger." He still seemed to be edging around what he wanted to say.

Valerie processed this for a moment, noting that he had yet to come out and say that he obviously fed in a similar way, at least in his ghost form. "I must've been a buffet when you and I fought. I remember how angry I used to get." She said off-handedly. She wondered if Sam and Tucker and Jazz knew about this little quirk. She wondered how they reacted.

Danny nodded. "Yeah. I didn't realize it then, but you… made me stronger." He blushed at his wording. "That came out creepy, didn't it?" He gave a hesitant smile, which Valerie returned.

Valerie held up a hand. "It's ok." She still wasn't sure why he was telling her this now.

He must've noticed her ongoing confusion. "It's just… uh… I thought telling you that would maybe prove that I'm all in on this plan of ours."

Valerie cocked her head. "Last night?" She snorted. "It wasn't really a plan," She said with a shrug, "It was me agreeing to go about this whole thing like a grown up." She shoved more pancake into her mouth.

Danny shook his head. "You're right. Sorry," He flushed again, "I don't… This has always been the hard part of our friendship, you know? The ghost stuff." He too took a big bite of his breakfast.

Valerie cringed internally. Didn't she know it? "Yeah… You're right." She racked her brain for a way out of this conversation, but she knew deep down that it would have to happen eventually. "But we're past that now? Being weird about this? I mean, I want to be." She admitted, her gaze hopeful.

Danny seemed to deflate in his relief. "Yes!" He blinked and gave her a sheepish smile at his exuberance. She laughed at his actions, and felt herself feeling lighter as well. "So now I have to ask you, and I really wish it wasn't necessary, if you see anything going on at the GiW… Anything at all that seems out of place, will you tell me?" His gaze was steady and expectant.

Valerie's eyes widened for a moment at his question. "Huh?"

He shook his head quickly. "That came out bad. I meant… I've told you one of the reasons why Hayes gets under my skin," He looked lost in thought for a moment before returning his intense gaze to her, "Well one of the other reasons is how much he hides stuff from me."

Valerie frowned. "I mean… it's a big organization…"

Danny nodded. "Which I get, I mean, I'm not trying to peek into his classified files or anything, but we agreed to be open about what kind of research and weaponry he was making for me. You know, to stop me."

Valerie's brows furrowed as she processed this. "So he's not telling you what he's up to?"

Danny shook his head. "Which wouldn't bother me so much if… Look, you know I'm all about being careful and having the means to stopping powerful ghosts, even if that includes me, but I think he's messing with some stuff he doesn't understand."

"Like what? I need you to be a little more specific if I'm going to know what to look out for." Valerie crossed her arms in frustration. Danny had two modes: full disclosure or murky as Amity Lake.

Danny's leg bounced, a habit he only had when he was really nervous. "It's… It's a flower." He said finally.

Valerie raised an eyebrow. "A flower?"

"It's called a Blood Blossom." He cringed as if remembering something specific. "They're bad news. If I'm even close to one I start feeling awful and my powers start fritzing." He looked her dead in the eyes, and Valerie suddenly understood how serious this was. You couldn't fake fear like that.

"And contact?"

"Like burning." His gaze was distant, and Valerie felt a little sick.

"Ingestion?"

"Haven't ate them, but I'd imagine it would be straight up poison." He shivered at the thought.

Valerie bit her lip. "Injection?"

He shook his head. "Bad, Val. These things are bad news."

"But you can't tell him that." She realized.

Danny nodded. "I don't mind having some sort of Blood Blossom weapon," the look on his face suggested otherwise, but Valerie decided not to push the issue, "But I do mind that  _he_  has it." He said finally.

Valerie took a deep breath as she processed everything. "Ok." She said finally. "Ok. So if I see these things, I'll let you know, and we'll figure out a way to get them out of his hands-"

"And into yours."

Valerie's eyes snapped up to meet his steady gaze. "What?"

He shrugged. "You're the only one I can think who could ever use it. I mean, I'd never ask my family or Sam and Tuck to carry that burden. I don't think they'd be able to… do it."

Valerie's chest constricted. "But I would." She finished, knowing it was true and hating the responsibility more than she's ever hated anything else in her entire life.

Danny put a hand over her's and gave her a dull smile. "I'm sorry."

She shook her head, wondering why the whole fate of the world had to land in their hands. Why they couldn't just be ignorant and normal and  _happy_ , for once. "Just… Don't give me a reason to use it, Fenton."

He squeezed her hand. "I promise."

* * *

The GiW was a beast of consistency. Valerie had worked at three separate GiW facilities in her time under them, and they were all almost eerily similar. The layout of the buildings were essentially the same. Labs to the south wing, Holding Rooms to the east wing, Business and Administration north wing, Equipment and Training west wing.

Scale was usually the only difference between Headquarters, and though she could tell that this one was just like the others, the sheer size of it left her feeling lost. Hayes had met her at the door upon entering and had handed her a manila folder labeled "Phantom" before giving her a sticky note that simply said West 288.

She didn't know where she was headed, but Hayes was gone before she could get a word in. With a long suffering sigh, she began her trek through the stark white halls towards… whatever.

She did her best to ignore the stares that followed her as she maneuvered through the building. Valerie really felt that she ought to be used to them by now, considering that it was common knowledge in the GiW that she was the famous Red Huntress.

Still, it appeared to her that she would once again end up as untouchable and friendless as ever here. Now  _that_  she was used to. As if on cue, her phone chimed. She glanced down to see that Danny had texted her.

_Hey, I forgot to ask earlier, but I thought you could text me your new address and I'll meet you there on your break to meet the truck and help you unpack. I'll bring lunch._

She bit her lip to contain her smile. So not friendless this time. She hadn't wanted to be moved back to Amity Park initially, but one day in and she was already thinking that this may have been a blessing in disguise as she typed her answer.

_Sounds great. I'll be getting my address soon, I think._

She was standing outside West 288 when his response came through.

_Have a good day :)_

_Thanks_

She was grinning openly when she opened the door. It was short lived, however, when she got a good look at the desk in what she realized was her office. There was already a tall stack of manila folders waiting for her. With a groan, she walked towards the desk and picked up the standard issue desk phone. Hayes number was already taped onto it, and she dialed it.

While the phone rang, she tossed the "Phantom" folder on the desk and began flipping through the only other folder on the desk that wasn't part of the huge pile. In it, she found her address, work schedule, and several papers she would need to sign to get the apartment under her name and finalize her transfer to a new branch of the GiW. Hayes picked up.

"Gray?"

She wasted little time. Hayes seemed like the type of boss where you had to get to the point before he found something else that needed his attention more. "Are these all cases?"

"They are. Already stacked in order of relative importance. I'd get to work. Your reputation is excellent and I expect you to maintain it while you're here."

She rolled her eyes at that. "Understood." He hung up first. Valerie huffed at the dial tone and put the phone back on the receiver. She pulled out her cell and quickly texted Danny the address and her lunch hour.

She grabbed the folder off the top, careful not to knock over the rest of the cases, and flipped it open to the first page as she flopped into her desk chair. She began to skim its contents, not particularly interested until she got to the toxicity report. Apparently this particular ghost was plant based. It would fire some kind of goo that, once in contact with any plant, mutated it into a deadlier version of itself.

That wasn't what caught her attention. In the report, the author mentioned that they had been studying other ecoplasm based plant – like organisms and that unlike their previous test subject, these plants had no particularly damaging or toxic effects on other ghosts (read: Phantom). Valerie had been fighting long enough by now to know that mostly harmless ecoplants were the norm, and whatever this scientist's other test subject was had to be something she hadn't encountered before.

Like Blood Blossoms. She flipped through the report until she found the author. Head of Science Division Laura Brannon. Valerie stood to head over to the Labs when her work phone rang. Caller ID identified Hayes.

"Gray," He began as soon as she picked up, "We need you at the park. Any chance you read the case file on Thorn? Should have been near the top if I remember correctly."

Valerie had already put the phone on speaker and activated her suit, reveling in the confidence and strength it gave her as the microtech slid over her skin from its origin on her back. The Fentons had really outdone themselves with this one, making carrying her suit around as easy as wearing a holster like contraption under her clothes. A flat disk pressed against the skin of her back and could release her suit upon command.

"I was just looking through his file, actually. I didn't get through all of it, but I think I've got the gist." By the time her sentence was finished, her battle suit was primed and ready for action.

"Probably more than you're used to knowing about new opponents. There's a button on your desk, should help you get out of there a little quicker. Consider it your homecoming gift." The line clicked as he hung up, and Valerie quickly spotted the innocuous looking button. It was black and had a clear plastic cover over it. She flipped the cover off and pressed the button.

Her large window suddenly split right down the middle, the reinforced glass sliding smoothly to the side. With a grin, she ran forward and threw herself out the window, clicking her heels and activating her hoverboard. Like a shot, she was off towards Amity Park.

* * *

The moments before battle were terribly calm. Valerie relaxed into her focus, quieting her breathing so she could hear and reveling in the boost of adrenaline that made her whole body tingle like a primed weapon. As the park came into view, she reached down to her belt and grabbed the hilt of the Ecto-blade. With the press of a button and flick of the wrist, the solid light ectoplasm that composed the blade activated. The guess had been a good one, she noted, as the park was covered in the remains of battle. Tall, thorny vines sprouted from the ground; some still fully intact and moving aimlessly as it searched for a new target and others already severed and burnt. Flowers and shrubs with large pointed teeth snapped at her from the ground, leaping up at her but not managing to get very close.

Valerie didn't slow to take in the scene, choosing instead to take the most direct route towards the sound of a fight and simply cutting through any of the plant obstacles. It didn't take her long to locate Danny and the ghost, which looked like a demonic garden gnome. It sat in the center of a mutated tree and laughed wickedly as the gnarled branches swiped at Phantom.

She saw his gaze flick towards her before he focused back on the tree beast with a smile.

"That all you got, Prick?" He called out, flying backwards and faking a yawn. "These little fits of yours are getting more and more boring every single break out."

Thorn directed his monster to chase after Danny. It was almost comedic, since Valerie knew the slow moving creature would never be able to hit Danny with his speed. She slowed her board down so it would be quieter as she flew in closer to the beast's fully exposed back.

"My name is Thorn!" The ghost shouted, clearly agitated, "How many times to do I have to say that before it'll catch on?!" His thick Scottish accent took on a tone that suggested Phantom wasn't the only one who didn't call him by his true alias.

When she got close enough, Valerie flicked her wrist again to extend the length of the blade in her hand. She grabbed the hilt with two hands and twisted her torso. Using her board to provide some extra momentum, she swung her blade. Her blade cut through the trunk like a hot knife through butter, and she took a little pride in the way the ghost screamed in shock at the whole upper half of his plant monster falling to the ground.

He pat the top of his pointed hat, shaking as he noticed the tip had been cut off as well. He turned to face Valerie slowly, and gulped loudly as she twirled her blade casually.

"We haven't met. I'm Red Huntress," She dropped into a sword fighting stance and narrowed her eyes at the ghost, "And I'm the  _mean_  hunter from around here."

Thorn didn't manage a full reaction before he was enveloped in a bright blue light. Valerie could have sworn he looked a little relieved as he was sucked up into Danny's thermos. Danny capped it and grinned at her.

"Beautifully done, Red!" He called, floating over to her. "Faster than ever, I see."

Valerie rolled her eyes at him. "Well, I did catch him by surprise." She shut off her blade and placed it back on her belt.

He shook his head. "So humble. At any rate I think you've made a great first impression."

"My specialty." She smirked at him before turning her board back towards the GiW.

She was seconds from darting off when she heard Danny speak. "So nice to have you back Red."

Her smirk grew into a smile that Danny couldn't see. "Nice to be back Phantom." She mumbled to herself.


	4. Chapter 4

* * *

A solid victory always put Valerie in a good mood. The fight had been short and easy, but she still couldn't help the fuzzy warm feelings of nostalgia washing over her. It would be short lived, however, since she could already see Hayes waiting for her in front of the entrance. As she got closer, she noticed his angry body language.

His thick arms were crossed over a broad chest, and his mouth was set in a deep frown. Valerie dropped to the ground in front on him, board deactivating. She allowed her helmet to pull back and reveal her face fully.

"Is there something wrong?" She asked, crossing her arms and cocking her hip to the side. Hayes simply stared at her for a moment before glancing around the parking lot, presumably checking to make sure there was no one else around. When he was satisfied, he turned his angry gaze on her.

"Who do you think you're working for, Gray?" He asked, voice deceptively calm. Valerie drew back in confusion.

"What?"

Hayes jaw worked as he ground his teeth. "Who. Do. You. Work. For?" He asked again.

"You." She replied, cocking her head. "Look, can you just tell me why you're angry? I handled that fight perfectly." She didn't flinch under his glare, confident in her performance.

"I'm angry," He began, "Because you work for  _me_ , but you allowed Phantom to take that ghost."

"Um, yeah. He has a portal and a safe method of putting the ghosts back in." An employee walked towards the entrance from his vehicle, and visibly shrunk as Valerie and Hayes stared him down, waiting for him to enter the building so they could continue their conversation. Hayes watched him walk down the main hall through the glass double doors before turning back to Valerie.

"I expect my agents to at least attempt to bring the ghosts in." He said finally. "It was protocol at the other Guys facilities you worked at, was it not?"

Valerie shrugged. "Well yeah, but there wasn't anyone else there with the ability to contain ghosts, so…" She frowned up at him. "I thought you and Phantom worked together."

Hayes grunted an affirmative. "I realize Phantom is just as interested in protecting the town as any of the rest of us, but the Guys in White aren't just superheroes hoping to gain a little notoriety. We are a research organization as well."

Valerie narrowed her eyes. "I realize. Why haven't you made an agreement with Danny then? After all, his parents are researchers as well. I'm sure he'd understand if you wanted to do some of your own." Somewhere in the back of her mind, a silent alarm triggered at his odd insistence, and she made a mental note to check out the Holding Cells and speak to Danny on the matter.

Hayes turned to enter the building and gestured for Valerie to follow. "He claims his parents already do plenty of research, and offered to share his files on the ghosts we wanted to study."

Valerie nodded and deactivated her suit as they entered. It slid away as she walked, revealing her GiW uniform once again. Hayes scrunched up his nose when he noticed a wrinkle had settled into her suit jacket. "Well there you go. Look, I don't mind bringing in ghosts whenever I catch them, but Phantom is just as capable of taking care of them."

Hayes huffed and stopped in front of the door to his office. "Very well. However," He gave her a steely look, "I must ask that you remember why you were transferred here, Valerie. I'd hate for you to be blindsided by Phantom because you let your fondness over Daniel get the better of you."

Valerie frowned. "They're the same person." She reminded. Hayes froze as he began walking into his office and studied her face, taking in her confused expression.

"Hmmm."

And with that, he disappeared into his office.

* * *

Valerie has had goose bumps since her conversation with Hayes that morning. With a sigh, she placed the case in her hand in the "Investigate" pile. These are the cases she would have to return to later in order to figure out which ghost may be behind it. In between the unread and investigate piles was her stack of cases where she was already aware of the perpetrator. She was making a list so she and Danny could round these ghosts up together before moving on to the unknowns.

A glance at her phone revealed that she had about thirty minutes before her lunch break. She smiled. She wouldn't get too much else done in this time anyway, so she might as well go check out the Holding Cells.

Valerie grabbed her phone and folder with her housing information and shoved them both into her bag before leaving her office. Since the Holding Cells were in the east wing, she'd simply have to walk straight across the building. Her phone beeped from within her bag. She paused and dug around in it. She smiled when she saw Danny was calling her.

"Hey." She said upon answering.

"Hey Val. Just wondering what you wanted from Nasty Burger?"

She smirked, though he couldn't see. "Do you mean you don't remember my usual order from the two weeks we dated? Honestly I'm hurt." She froze for a moment when she reached the central hub, mentally groaning at the number of people rushing about. Some wore lab coats or pristine white training jumpsuits, while the great majority were wearing the same white suit as she.

"…I do, actually. Just wanted to be sure you hadn't changed your order." His voice sounded a little embarrassed, and Valerie couldn't help the warm feeling blooming in her chest.

"The usual is fine, you dork." She said, attempting to steer them back towards their normal banter. "Oh, by the way, I may have something of interest to tell you when we get to my place."

"About the Blood Blossoms?" He sounded hopeful. Valerie cringed.

"Uh… Not quite? But I'll check those out, promise."

"OK. I understand you can't be too conspicuous about poking around. The effort means a lot though."

Valerie winced again, knowing full well she could easily check out the Blossoms now. "Right. I'll see you soon."

"Bye." He hung up.

She stared at her phone for a moment before shaking her head and tossing it back in her bag. She knew the flowers were important to him, but she had a  _feeling_  about her current mission. She reached the guard check-in. The guard on duty was reclining back in his desk chair, visibly bored as he read an issue of "Popular Mechanics".

"Excuse me," she said, gaining his attention.

"How can I help you?" He asked with a monotone. He glanced up, and suddenly his whole demeanor changed, "Miss Huntress?!" He scrambled to sit up straight and tossed his magazine on the ground. He noticed Valerie's amused face and blushed. "Um, how can I help you?" His fingers waited poised above his keyboard.

"Nothing special," She squinted to read his name tag, "Mr. Nicholls. Just exploring a little. Wanted to see the Cells."

Nicholls grinned, revealing a mouth full of braces. "Oh, you can call me Felix."

"Only if you call me Valerie." She smirked at him, and he blushed.

"Um, yeah, of course," He began typing away at his computer before frowning and looking up at her, "Right, so, it looks like you aren't in the system, and therefore don't have the clearance to go in." He cringed. "Sorry Miss- uh, Valerie."

Valerie bit her lip and looked at the door, forlorn. "Oh man, I really just wanted to have a look around." She looked Felix in his eyes, pouting a little. "Are you certain there's no way I could just have a peek? It wouldn't take any longer than say… ten minutes?"

Felix's ears were bright red. "Um… well, I could maybe grant you  _very_  temporary clearance, uh, just this once." He began typing away at his computer before turning in his chair and rolling himself towards the door. Hey scanned his nametag and quickly entered a password on the keypad before rolling back to his desk. "Right, so, that'll only last for an hour, but, uh, just scan your card and it'll let you through."

Valerie grinned. "Thank you so much Felix!" She walked past him and scanned her nametag. The door opened with a hiss.

"Um, I have to take your bag though." Felix said, still staring.

"Of course," Valerie handed her bag to him, "You're the boss!"

Felix blanched at her words before smiling weakly at her, and with a final flirty wave, Valerie walked through the door.

She waited until the door was closed fully before rolling her eyes. It was a little demeaning, but he would be a good friend to have if she wanted to be able to keep an eye on things. She began walking down the hallway, noting that most of the cells were very empty. She was relieved to see this, of course.

As she walked, she noticed a faint glow up ahead as well as a couple of guards. She knew before getting there that this cell had to be occupied. One of the guards stopped her as she got closer.

"Name?"

"Valerie Gray," She showed him her badge, "I'm just passing though. Who is this?" She tried to lean and look past the broad guard and see for herself.

"Careful, ma'am," He said, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder, "This one's a little chatty, and these ghosts tend to have some very disturbing words for new recruits." He must've noticed the recent issue date of her pass.

Valerie put her hands on her hips. "Cute, but you don't have to worry about me. You ever hear of the Red Huntress?"

The guard gaped at her, but before he could speak, a high pitched chuckle came from the cell.

"Well, what do ya know? Small world."

Valerie recognized the voice, but didn't believe it until she pushed past the guard and saw Skulker, suitless and chained to the wall. "Skulker!?"

The green blob nodded. "The one and only." He took notice of her uniform. "I always had you pegged as an honorable hunter, but I suppose things change."

Valerie narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean?"

"Um, Miss Gray, you really shouldn't be-"

She silenced the guard with a glare before turning back to the imprisoned ghost. "What do you mean?" She repeated with clenched teeth.

Skulker glanced at the guards and then looked at her. "It's nothing, Huntress. But allow me to say: at least I was  _merciful_." His gaze was intense as he put emphasis on the last word.

"Miss Gray, we really have to ask you to leave." The guard's tone left no room for argument. Valerie stared at him and then at Skulker before nodding.

"Of course. My apologies." She said before turning and heading the way she came. She attempted to look shaken up as opposed to angry. It must've worked because the guard gave her a soft smile.

"It's alright Miss Gray, you're above dealing with scum like this now."

She nodded and began walking back the way she came. She didn't know if Danny was aware that Skulker was here, but it was time he knew. Skulker's last words bounced around in her head, and she couldn't shake the feeling that they were more than just a jab at her. She picked up the pace.

She had to talk to Danny  _now_.

* * *

She tried not to look like she was rushing too much when she exited the building. She was relieved when she saw that Danny's car was waiting for her right outside the double doors. She picked up her pace and started gesturing for Danny to unlock the car before she was even fully though the front doors.

Danny gave her a look, but had her door unlocked for her anyway. She opened the door and tossed her bag to the floor before practically throwing herself into the seat.

"Danny, drive." She said, slamming the door.

"Um, ok." He still looked confused but drove off anyway. As he made it to the end of the parking lot, his phone GPS was already instructing him on where to go to get to Valerie's new apartment. "So, uh, are you going to tell me what's going on?"

"Do you know where Skulker is?" Valerie blurted, staring at Danny intensely. He shrugged, not bothering to take his eyes off the road.

"Eh, no. He's been quiet for a while though." He glanced over at Valerie as he merged onto the open highway that would bring them back into Amity. "Why?"

"It's because he's imprisoned at the GiW."

Danny didn't speak for a moment, and for a second Valerie wondered if he cared. That is, of course, until she noticed his white knuckled grip on the steering wheel and the tightness of his face. "That is," He ground out, "news to me." He paused, visibly trying to gather himself. "Hayes is supposed to let me know when he has prisoners so I can retrieve them and bring them back to the portal."

Valerie shook her head. "I hate to tell you this, but I think it gets worse." She winced at her own words. She watched as Danny took a couple very deep breaths.

"Tell me."

She absently wondered if it was a good idea to bring this up while he was driving, but figured she couldn't leave him in suspense now. "Skulker said something to me… He… When he hunts down other ghosts or whatever, he keeps them as live prisoners, right?"

Danny nodded. "He does, but he's taken to only hunting low level creatures now. Out of respect for me, of all things." She could hear his effort to keep his voice calm.

She immediately launched into her thought process, the words spilling from her mouth in an effort to keep up with her mind. "Right, so he told me he was 'merciful', right? That's kind of an odd jab though, don't you think? I mean, for what it's worth, he's just in prison. Which, if you think about it, is basically what he does to the creatures he hunts. Unless, of course, there's more to it all..." She looked over at him, wondering of maybe she had looked too much into the simple statement.

Danny immediately pulled over to the side of the road, jamming the button to turn his hazards on before putting his car into park and turning fully to face Valerie. "It would only make sense if they're not just imprisoning him. Why else would Hayes not want me to know he has him in custody unless to make sure I wouldn't go looking for him?" He finished, eyes glowing a brilliant, toxic green in his fury.

Valerie drew back, feeling her adrenaline kick in as his emotional response triggered her fight or flight instinct. "I don't know anything for sure, but that's what it seemed like he was trying to say without giving it away. I think he may have bought me some time to confirm it before barging in there asking for Hayes's head." She ignored her instincts and placed a gentle hand on his forearm, which was tense from his hand being squeezed into a tight fist.

"Hayes is... He's a master at keeping secrets like this. He hides what he's doing in plain sight. There's no secret damning file or big melodramatic monologue. He does what he wants and if you start poking around he has explanation after explanation waiting and ready to go. It's honestly lucky that you even caught wind of anything strange going on." Danny mumbled. He shook his head. "I know you aren't fond of ghosts, Val, but this? Whatever Hayes is doing? They're sentient beings. It's not right!" His eye flared dangerously with his words, and Valerie swore she saw his hands glow for a moment before returning to normal.

"I know it isn't Danny," She replied, moving her hand down his arm to his hand, "Which is why I'm going to help you find out what's going on." Danny's hand opened and he took her smaller hand into his own. She used her thumb to rub soothing circles onto his hand. "We'll stop this, I promise."

Danny closed his eyes and took a few more deep breaths, leaning backwards and relaxing his head on his headrest. He turned to stare at Valerie, eyes blue and sad. "I know the Guys aren't evil, Valerie. Not entirely. But they don't know where to draw the line. These ghosts were humans once."

Valerie sighed. "I know Danny, but I don't think any of us understand like you do. Let's just make sure to get our facts straight, then we can talk to Hayes and remind him of that."

Danny huffed and nodded, smiling weakly at her. "My own personal voice of reason." He said with a soft chuckle.

Valerie smirked. "In terms of sick cosmic jokes, that one's actually pretty funny."

* * *

"I still can't believe the Guys are going in half on the rent for this place." Danny said from the guest bedroom of Valerie's new apartment. She laughed and set the box in her arms on the middle of the floor with the rest of her stuff.

"They  _really_  wanted me to transfer here." She smiled at Danny as he walked back into the main living area. "After all, I'm the only one qualified to deal with the  _evil_  ghost who's been saving the city for 10 years.

Danny snorted and leaned against the bar countertop that separated her living room from her kitchen. "Fear me." He said, smirking and flashing his eyes at her playfully.

Valerie stood next to him and put her hands on her hips, looking at the pile of stuff on her floor. "Are you coming back here after I get off work to help me start unpacking?"

"Mmmhmm."

Valerie nodded. "Great. And I'll bringing some cases for you to look at with me too." She cocked her head to the side. "There's a lot of new ghosts around here." It really put emphasis on the amount of time she had been gone.

Danny hummed in agreement. "It's because I've been powering up. A lot of them come to challenge me."

Valerie raised her brows. "Really? Is it the lair thing?" She asked, vaguely remembering Tucker explaining the concept of lairs and how they work to her when they were younger. Danny nodded.

"Yeah, that's actually the main reason I think Amity is my lair. Why else would new ghosts suddenly be so interested?" Danny's face lit up as he explained, excited to have someone new to discuss these things with. "Plus, ghosts have been trying to create a stable lair on Earth for centuries, according to Frostbite. It would be a lot easier for them to take mine, which is already established, and then go from there."

Valerie frowned. "Go from there?"

"Sure," Danny shrugged, "Extend their territory. Improve their lair. The same type of stuff they would do in the ghost zone."

Valerie's breath caught at his words, but she managed to keep her tone casual. "What about you? Do you have that urge as well?"

Danny pursed his lips as he thought. "Well… Yes and no." He switched positions so his elbows were resting on the countertop. "It's not particularly strong. I'm content with Amity as it is. Plus, even if I wanted to, I can't exactly go about 'conquering' more land. Hayes would be on my ass in a millisecond. Followed very closely by  _you_ , I'd imagine." He smirked at her, eyes knowing.

Valerie returned the look. "You'd imagine right. Although at this point, I'd probably be angrier that you lied to me about your homicidal tendencies than anything."

Danny laughed openly at that. "Fair. But honestly, I've found that improving my lair can be just as satisfying." He began listing things on his fingers. "I help clean up litter around the town, work with the mayor on infrastructure, and I've only given local shops the rights to use my logo, which has really helped them with business. And, I've very recently helped a spectacular hunter move in," He gave Valerie a wink, "So I'd say I'm  _very_  happy with the state of my lair."

"Wow." Valerie blinked at him, genuinely impressed. "I didn't realize you did so much for Amity now. That's… You're something else, Danny." She smiled at him fondly. He seemed to puff up with pride at her praise.

"Thanks." He made a show of looking like he was thinking very hard about something. "Now, if I could just convince  _Hayes_  of me not being a ticking time bomb…" Valerie snorted.

"You've managed to convince  _me_ , Danny. Hayes should be child's play." She glanced down at her phone, disappointed to see she'd have to be getting back to work soon. "Oh hey, you wouldn't happen to know Laura Brannon, would you?" She asked as she grabbed her bag from its place on the counter.

"I do, actually," Danny said, watching Valerie as she fixed her ponytail, "She's really nice. Why?"

"I'm pretty sure that if the Guys have Blood Blossoms that she's the one studying them." She put a hand on her hip.

Danny frowned. "Laura?" He looked distraught at the thought of it.

Valerie shrugged. "She  _is_  head of the science division." She put a hand on his shoulder. "But, if it makes you feel better, there's a decent chance that even if she is working with them, she has no idea they plan to weaponize them."

"Really?" He asked, eyes hopeful.

Valerie nodded. "No one  _really_  knows everything going on in a GiW facility other than the Director. He would keep the person studying the plant and the person turning it lethal separate." She was glad to see her words seemed to comfort him. He must genuinely like the woman.

He managed a small smile. "No one else except you, it would seem." He pushed off the counter and grabbed his keys, following Valerie as she walked out of the apartment. She turned and locked the door behind them.

"Danny, if there's one thing I've learned since high school, it's that I don't have the time or patience to wait for everyone to decide to fill me in. I know everything because I  _want_  to." Valerie pushed open the door to the stairs and they began their trek one flight down.

"I like it." Danny said with a grin. "What would I do without you?" He held open the door to the stairwell for her.

"You'd still be glaring at the back of Hayes's head."

Danny laughed. "Right." He held the front door open for her as well. "And you'd be opening doors for yourself."

"Honestly I don't know how I'd manage with my delicate lady hands." She led the way to Danny's car and tried the door. He'd left it unlocked, and she rolled her eyes at his trusting nature as she plopped into the passenger side seat.

Danny took his place behind the wheel a moment later. "We make a good team then, yeah?"

"I don't know about a team, but you're a pretty good sidekick."


	5. Chapter 5

Valerie groaned as she added yet another folder to her 'investigate' pile. Danny really hadn't been exaggerating when he said that a bunch of new ghosts had recently started attempting to take Amity for themselves. Luckily, she had already gotten permission from Hayes to show Danny the files; he was an official consultant, after all.

She had even convinced Hayes to let her at the shooting range for a little while before returning to desk work. She was surprised that he had stayed to watch her, seeing as he almost definitely had other things to be doing. He sat in the glass observation room, eyes bouncing back and forth between herself and the targets she was massacring.

Still, Valerie wasn't going to complain. She loved showing off a little, and she figured that by proving her battle prowess, Hayes would be willing to overlook any minor transgressions to keep her around. Minor transgressions like snooping around his secret projects and telling Danny about them. She frowned as she began packing folders into her bag. For a moment, she felt a little guilty. After all, her job was to keep an eye on  _Danny_.

She shook her head, dismissing the line of thought. She  _was_  keeping an eye on Danny, but she was keeping an eye on Hayes too. The director of the Guys in White didn't have the powers Danny had, but he was far from a helpless civilian. He had the means to do some real damage, just as Danny did. Mind made up, she walked out of her office and locked the door behind her.

Danny had offered to drive her home again, but she refused, telling him that she planned on talking to Laura when she got off work, and didn't know how long that would take. Instead, he offered to meet her at her apartment since she had given him her spare key and start unpacking for her. She agreed, blushing at his kindness. It's been a while since she had someone around to do little things like that for her.

It didn't take her long to reach the Labs. She was thankful that they seemed to be relatively quiet. A lot of the scientists must've gotten off work at the same time as her. She noticed a man who had his lab coat hung over his forearm walking towards the exit.

"Excuse me," She said, stopping him, "I was wondering if you knew where I could find Dr. Brannon."

He hummed. "She always stays pretty late to work on a few personal projects, so I'm willing to bet she'll be in her lab." He turned and pointed to a door on the other side of the massive lab. "It's through that door."

Valerie thanked him and walked that direction. She glanced around, taking in the equipment all around her. She didn't know what most of it did, though some of it looked like something she had seen at the Fenton's. Chemicals lined the walls within tall reinforced glass shelving cases. With a huff, she realized that even if there was anything incriminating here, she wouldn't know what. Danny probably wouldn't either.

If they could somehow get the Fenton's in here…

She reached the door to Laura's lab, and she could hear very faint humming from within. Valerie knocked a couple times, and the humming cut off abruptly. "Dr. Brannon?" She called through the door. "Are you available?"

She listened at the sounds of clinking glasses and papers rustling before the door opened, revealing a short woman with vivid red hair. She blinked up at Valerie, blue eyes looking huge from behind her large round glasses. "Um," Her voice was soft, "Who are you?"

Valerie smiled kindly, holding a hand out to the shorter woman. "I'm Valerie Gray."

Laura returned the smile shyly and shook her hand. "Well hello. I'm Dr. Laura Brannon, but, uh, feel free to call me Laura."

"It's nice to meet you Laura." Valerie glanced past her to the lab for a moment before looking back down at her. "Could we talk?"

Laura bit her lip, looking a little nervous before nodding. "Of course, come in." She turned and led Valerie into the lab. For the most part, it was a bunch more stuff that Valerie didn't recognize. Her eyes skimmed her surroundings with disinterest. She froze when she caught sight of a glass case. Within was a lone flower, sitting in a clear glass vase. It looked like a rose, but the strange colors and faint glow was all she needed to know it definitely wasn't.

Laura seemed to notice her sudden interest. She smiled at Valerie and led them over to the plant. "Lovely, isn't it? I have several of these that I'm studying, but I begged Hayes to let me keep one for myself. I just thought it was so strange and beautiful." She dragged a finger down the side of the glass.

"It is." Valerie agreed, heart racing. She did all she could to remain nonchalant. Laura made no effort to hide the plant from her, so she clearly wasn't worried about a security issue or anything. Valerie wanted to keep it that way.

"We keep it in a case because we aren't sure what kind of effects it may have on humans." Laura continued, adjusting her glasses. "If it's anything like what it does to ghosts, we'd be in trouble, for sure."

Valerie blinked. "It's harmful to ghosts?" She asked.

Laura nodded. "From what I've observed it has nasty effects on ectoplasm. It's safe to assume that ectoplasmic entities wouldn't do well with it." She began speaking faster as she got more excited. "It was my idea to study it, I mean, a ghost plant that's harmful to ghosts? How strange! It took a lot to get Hayes to let me so this extra research. My father was a botanist, so I've always had this interest in studying plant life."

"Ah, so this is all you?" Valerie asked, a little relieved.

Laura nodded. "Mmmhmmm. A little research for curiosity's sake." She giggled in delight. "It's nice, sometimes, to study things for fun. Hayes is so focused on being able to stop ghosts that he forgets what a fascinating phenomenon they are." She stopped suddenly. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I'm sure you came here for something far more important than my little side project!" She stared at Valerie expectantly.

Valerie balked. "Um, yeah, actually. I, uh…" She glanced around, noting the messy piles of papers a couple lab tables over. "I was hoping you had another copy of the toxicity report for Thorn? I've managed to misplace it." She smiled sheepishly. Laura grinned.

"It's alright! I lose papers all the time! Let me run into my office and print you up a new copy." She turned to walking into the adjoining room before stopping suddenly and turning back to face Valerie. "Oh, and don't touch anything please! I don't want you to accidentally poison yourself or something!" She giggled nervously before turning and walking into her office.

Valerie turned to look at the flower again. She didn't know how something so innocent looking could apparently be so dangerous to Danny, but she was glad Laura had no ill will and Hayes wasn't aware of what he had stumbled upon.

A rack of small sealed vials next to the plant caught her eye. The liquid within was a bright magenta that seemed to glow a little. She glanced back towards Laura's office to make sure the other woman wasn't looking before grabbing one of the vials and carefully placing it in her bag. She hoped Laura wouldn't notice one missing, but felt confident since the rack wasn't full anyway. She moved away from the counter the flower was on and pretended to inspect a little machine whirring away a couple tables over.

Laura walked out of the office with a piece of paper and a smile. "Here it is!" She noticed Valerie's pretend interest in the machine before her. "Oh, you've found our purifier! We use it to purify ectoplasm for our experiments. Pretty neat, huh?" She handed Valerie the paper.

"It is." Valerie agreed, taking the form and skimming through it for a moment before slipping it into her bag. "Thank you so much for this Laura."

"Of course!" The woman blushed and looked away. "I, uh, I'm a huge fan of the Red Huntress's work, so this is really an honor."

Valerie blinked. "I thought you didn't recognize me?"

"No, I did, I just didn't want to seem like an obnoxious fan or a spaz or something. I'm sure you get that enough." Laura smiled shyly. Valerie smirked.

"Well, let it be known the Red Huntress is a fan of your work as well." She moved to walk out of the room. "Thanks again!"

Laura positively beamed. "Anytime, Valerie."

Valerie walked out of the room before letting her face fall. Another possible friend, and another betrayal in the making.

* * *

By the time she made it back to her apartment, Valerie had pretty much well and truly repressed her guilt; as she did with most unsavory emotions lately. Instead, she allowed herself to be more relieved than anything. After all, Danny had been wrong about the creation of a weapon, and Hayes was too busy with any number of other projects to bother asking Laura about the Blood Blossom's dangerous potential.

She wasn't sure how long  _that_  would last, but between herself and Phantom, who was also friends with her, it shouldn't be hard to convince her to keep that little fact under wraps. She used her key to open her door and smiled at Danny's progress. He was almost finished unpacking the kitchenware, and it was all sitting on the counters so she could put them where she wanted. He looked up when she walked in.

"Hey, Val. How was the rest of your day?" He asked, pulling another plate from the box.

"Mostly boring." She said, reaching into her bag and pulling out the glass vial. "You might want to put that plate down." She warned with a grin.

Danny looked up as he placed it in the pile of plates before him. "Huh?" He noticed the vial. "What's that?" He asked, moving around the counter and walking over to her for a closer look. She immediately pulled it closer to her chest.

"Careful. If it's what I think it is, you won't want to be anywhere near it."

"Wait," Danny said, eyes going wide as he froze mid step, "Is that…?"

Valerie shrugged. "I honestly don't know, but it was sitting near Laura's flower thing, so… I have a feeling." Danny stared at the vile warily.

"Only one way to know for sure." He changed direction and moved to sit on the couch. "Come near me and open it."

Valerie stared at him. "What? Are you crazy?"

"No," He insisted, waving her over, "Why do you think I sat down?" She walked over to him, eyes full of uncertainty.

"I don't know about this Danny." She said as she came to a stop and stood directly in front of him.

He gave her a nervous smile. "Me either, honestly. But we have to know what this stuff is for sure." He took in her uncertain look and squeezed the hand that wasn't holding the vial gently. "I'll be fine, Valerie." He insisted before releasing her hand. He closed his eyes for a moment, and when he opened them again they were the bright green characteristic of Phantom. "I'm going to access some of my powers in my human form rather than change all the way, in case that  _is_  some super potent Blood Blossom goo." At that, he glowed slightly before disappearing.

"Right." Valerie mumbled. "Ok Danny, I'm going to open it in three… two… one." She couldn't tell if he was bracing himself, but she hoped he was. She unscrewed the lid and removed it. To her surprise, the scent that drifted out was quite fragrant. "Well, it smells nice." She noted. She stared intently at the empty space where she knew Danny was sitting. "How are you doing?"

He still wasn't visible when he spoke. "I'm… Not great." She could hear the strain in his voice. She gasped and moved to put the lid back on the vial when she heard his disembodied voice again. "No… Just… I'm trying to see how long I can last."

"Are you insane!?" She glared at the empty space before her.

"…No… But it's… An important thing to know… I think." He sounded sluggish, and Valerie wished he would just hurry up and appear so she could cap the vial again. A low groan sounded out from the couch, and Valerie thought her heart would leap out of her chest with worry. "I… I can't…" And then Danny appeared again.

Valerie gasped and resealed the vial, no longer waiting for his permission. She ran over to the kitchen and put it in the cabinet furthest away from him before rushing back.

He was breathing heavily still as he relaxed limply against the couch, and his face was terrifyingly pale; closer to the shade of Phantom's skin than Danny's. Sweat had begun beading up along his hair line and he had still yet to open his eyes. Valerie crouched down and grabbed either side of his face, thumbs tracing his cheekbones gently.

"Danny?" She spoke softly. "Danny, are you ok? Can you open your eyes?"

He nodded before doing so, looking into her worried gaze for a few moments before smiling sheepishly. "I'm ok."

Valerie deflated in her relief, moving her hands to his back and pulling him into a hug. He hesitated a moment before wrapping his arms around her as well and burying his face between her neck and shoulders. "We are NOT doing that again. This was the stupidest idea you've ever had Fenton, and you've thought of some idiotic stuff before, let me tell you. You stupid, masochistic, motherfu-"

"Valerie," Danny cut her off, "I'm ok." He pulled away from the hug so she could see the color returning to his face. "See?"

She inspected him for a moment with a critical eye before standing and pulling out of his grip to walk towards the kitchen. She needed something to get her mind off of that, and some mindless unboxing would surely do just the thing. "I can't believe you wanted me to be the sole owner of a Blood Blossom  _weapon_. That was horrific." Danny rubbed the back of his head as he stood and followed her.

"Right, uh… About that…"

Valerie froze at his tone before turning and glaring at him. "What?" She ground out, already having an idea of exactly where this was going.

He reached out and grabbed her hands so they were resting between them. "Hear me out here Valerie. We've made hundreds of contingency plans because we weren't sure which one, if any, would work. But this one…" He looked right into her eyes, undeterred by the fury he saw within them. "This one  _would_. Guaranteed."

Valerie stared for a moment, trying to keep her eyes from watering. She didn't succeed. "I… Yeah. Yeah it would." Her voice cracked as she spoke. Danny's eyes widened. He couldn't remember the last time he'd seen Valerie cry. Actually, he wasn't really sure if he ever had.

"Oh Val, c'mon," He tried, wiping her cheeks with his thumbs, "I know this is a really shitty thing to ask of you but…" But she was a fighter just like he was, and she deserved the chance to win against him if she ever needed to.

Valerie shook her head and pulled away from his grip, pushing past him as she walked the bathroom. "I've told you once and I'll tell you again," She looked back at him with a dark glare, "Don't give me a reason to use it, Fenton. Or I'll make sure your death is  _painful_."

Danny shivered slightly at the threat, but nodded all the same. "Duly noted."

* * *

Later that evening found Danny and Valerie sitting on the ground at her coffee table, surrounded by folders and the leftovers of the Chinese food they had ordered. Danny huffed as he tossed the folder in his hand onto the table.

"Alright, I going to say it. We might need a little help."

Valerie put her face in her hands and groaned. "Ugh. I was worried you'd say that." She lifted her face and looked over at Danny. "How in the world has this gotten so bad anyway?" Danny patrolled almost every night, and he was constantly having to take ghosts down during the day.

Danny shrugged and picked up his phone. "No clue, honestly. It hasn't seemed like there's been a spike in ghost activity. Why hasn't Hayes showed me all this before now?" He sounded frustrated as he typed away.

Valerie lifted a brow. "Who are you texting?"

Danny turned his head to her and grinned. "I'm calling in the cavalry. We're cleaning Amity up this weekend." He sounded excited at the prospect.

Valerie leaned back onto her hands. "The cavalry?"

Danny nodded. "Sam's going to buy her and Tuck plane tickets since she can afford last minute trips like that, Jazz lives about an hour and a half away, so she can drive down here, and I'm sure mom and dad would love a little action."

Valerie felt a twinge of nervousness at the list, but she dispelled it as quickly as it came. They were all adults now, it was very unlikely that Sam and Tucker held any grudges against her.

"Sounds like a party." Valerie said with a smirk. She stood and stretched before gathering her and Danny's trash and walking into her kitchen so she could throw it all away.

"It'll be something, for sure." Danny agreed. "Meanwhile, you and I can probably knock out a few of these by Friday." He waved Valerie's list she had written earlier.

Valerie leaned against her counter and nodded. "Hayes told me I don't have to come into the office until Saturday morning for combat training." She bit her lip. "Speaking of Hayes: We still have to find out what he's doing with his prisoners."

Danny nodded. "I've been thinking about that actually, and I have an idea." He sighed. "I don't really like it but it's the best I've got."

"Well, let's hear it then."

"So my parents have been working on this liquid tracker stuff." He explained. "A liquid is the best way to get a tracking device on – or in this case  _in_  - a ghost, seeing as they aren't entirely solid all of the time. The stuff is basically ectoplasm and microchips mixed together."

"Wait, wouldn't the microchips just… fall out if the ghost went intangible?"

Danny grinned. "That's the thing, but get this: mom and dad figured out that ectoplasm has a certain frequency, and if an object is able to match the frequency then it'll act with the ectoplasm. It's how my clothes can become intangible with me."

"So people must be able to adapt to the frequency too." Valerie noted.

"Exactly. So basically, they set the microchips to vibrate at the same frequency and bam! They can go intangible too. The weapon has this projectile that's sort of like a dart or something, and they coat the tip with the tracking fluid."

Valerie nodded in understanding. "So basically, we just need to hit a ghost with the stuff and let me bring it to Hayes. Then we see if the ghost stays in his holding cell the whole time or if he's moved at all."

"And if he is, we'll know exactly where." Danny finished. He frowned. "The thing is, if he is… torturing ghosts, I'd hate to bring one right to him."

Valerie sighed. "I know, but if we find out what's going on, we can save that ghost and hopefully keep this from happening again."

"I know," Danny stared out of the window in thought, "It still sucks." He looked back over at Valerie. "We also have to be careful that he doesn't know your involvement in all of this." She cocked her head.

"What? Why?"

"You want to keep your job, don't you?" He crossed his arms. "Do you really think that if Hayes even  _suspects_  you might be more loyal to me than him that he won't hesitate to send you somewhere else?"

"Good point." She agreed. "Although you seem pretty confident about me being more loyal to you." She pointed out with a smirk.

Danny shrugged. "I mean, I don't know for sure, I guess." He gave her a hopeful smile. "But I always have been kind of an optimist."

Valerie ducked her head shyly before changing the topic. "Next order of business then… What are we going to do with the Blood Blossom extract?" She had already put the vial in a safe within her closet.

"We should get it to mom and dad," Danny made a face as he thought about it, "Well, you should anyway. I would make the weapon myself if I could." He seemed genuinely disappointed that he couldn't.

Valerie raised a brow. "You really think your parents will be willing to create a weapon that can kill you?"

Danny shrugged. "I mean, if you think about it,  _all_  of their weapons could kill me."

Valerie snorted. "Yeah, right. Not with your healing factor." She pushed off the counter and moved over to her friend, plopping onto the ground next to him once again.

"Touché." Danny conceded, throwing a casual arm over her shoulders. "Just mention that you want a specialized weapon made. I'm willing to bet they'll even throw in some security measures so only you can use it."

Valerie looked up at him. "So… lie to them about it being just for you." She crossed her arms.

Danny cringed. "I wouldn't say lie, just… omit." He squeezed her shoulders. "C'mon Val, they'll never know because I'll never give you a reason to use it, remember?"

Valerie sighed. "You've turned me into a delinquent in  _two days_." He smiled at her sheepishly.

"I know Val. It's just… this is the nature of this life, you know?" He frowned. "I wish it wasn't like this. I wish I didn't have to ask you to do this kind of stuff." He looked away from her, visibly upset.

Valerie rolled her eyes. "Shut up, Fenton. We all do what we have to to keep everyone safe." He seemed mildly comforted at the reminder. "I'll get the weapon made. But you have to talk to Laura and convince her to lie to Hayes about how lethal the Blood Blossoms are."

Danny groaned and tilted his head back so it rested on the couch behind them. " _Omit_."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night." Valerie gave his chest a couple quick pats before standing. "Speaking of sleep, I hope you aren't expecting to get too much of it tonight."

Danny laughed at that before giving her a smoldering look and wiggling his eyebrows. "Is that a promise?"

Valerie snorted and swat at him with a pillow. "Get your mind out of the gutter Fenton. Amity needs some ghost hunters, and we're the best of the best. Suit up."


	6. Chapter 6

When life got a little overwhelming, Danny liked to take a moment to stop and look at the situation in the larger scale. It made a lot of problems seem smaller, more like minor obstacles between him and the  _prize_. He wasn't really sure what that was, unfortunately, but he was pretty sure he'd know when he got there. If he ever did.

When he was younger, he thought the prize might be freedom from this strange responsibility. He found out quickly that as long as he had a ghost half, and a hero complex, he'd always have it. Then, when everyone moved away to live their relatively normal lives, he thought maybe the prize would be that their lives would intersect with his in the way they used to. Then everyone graduated and got jobs elsewhere and even though they were always,  _always_  more than happy to return and help if he needed them to, he found that by then he really didn't.

Now, of course, Valerie was back and they were  _friends_. Two people with a real functional relationship and tons of mysteries they had all the time in the world to unravel. Together. So suddenly Danny had a new prize.

Valerie. Her companionship.

He just had to keep her there, and then maybe, just maybe, everything would all seem worth it. Because, quite frankly, it was getting tiresome. Why keep fighting when there was nothing at the end but a suspicious Hayes and another ghost waiting in the wings for its turn to screw around with him?

He had no plans on filling Valerie in on her new role in his life. After all, he didn't need Spectra to know that it was probably very unhealthy to decide to have a mild co-dependency issue.

"Hey, get your head in the game Phantom!" Valerie called as she soared past him on her hover board. "You're letting me have all the fun!" She blasted at the tentacles of the monster before them. It hissed and moved to swat at her.

Danny felt a chill beginning deep in his chest and flowing down through his arm as he accessed his ice powers and froze the beast's limb. Valerie blasted it and it shattered like glass. He whistled to gain the ghost's attention, and it responded by chasing after him with one of its other seven tentacles.

He performed a couple loops and some confusing turns, smiling when the limb came out of the chase tangled with one of the other appendages. He glanced up at Valerie.

"I'm in, I'm in!" He reassured her. He watched as she waited for the beast to roar at them again. When it did, she tossed a plasma grenade into its mouth. They both waited in anticipation, but the blast simply pushed its body mass outwards slightly. The monster roared in anger, but showed no other signs of discomfort.

"That didn't work." She called, dodging a gooey projectile.

"The ice seemed to help, I could slow it down enough for you to catch it!" Danny responded, not waiting for her confirmation before blasting the creature with an unrelenting beam of icy energy. It began slowing its progression as it howled at him, and as soon as it slowed to an almost complete stop, Valerie's thermos released its bright blue beam and sucked the monster right in.

The duo met in the center of the street, both looking out at the path of goo the monster left behind. "Minimal property damage." Valerie commented as they both caught their breath.

Danny nodded. "Shouldn't be too tough for the GiW to clean up." He glanced over at her as she released her helmet. Her curls were matted into an odd shape, causing him to chuckle. She snapped her gaze to him.

"What?" She asked, trying to glare. It wasn't very intimidating though, since Danny could see her lips twitch as she tried not to laugh.

"Cute hair." He replied. She snorted and started shaking out her curls the best she could. She didn't look embarrassed. Danny supposed it made sense; after all, they had seen each other in almost every state of dishevelment back in high school.

"So," She started after a moment of half-heartedly trying to fix her helmet hair, "You think I should bring this guy in? We could spit him out for a second, fire the dart, and have him back in before his blob brain even knew what was going on."

Danny shook his head. "Nah, he's too big and noisy. No good for any secret operations."

"Back to the ghost zone then." Valerie reached into one of her pouches and pulled out her and Danny's list. He was proud to see that they had already managed to cross off a few loose ghosts since last night. "What about the box ghost? He's apparently still on the loose."

Danny thought about it for a moment before nodding. "I think that could work. But first," He took the list from her hand, ignoring her protests, "I think we deserve a nap. We've been at this all morning, and we didn't get much sleep last night."

Valerie rolled her eyes. "Fine, you big toddler. Let's bring this guy to Fenton Works. I'll just crash there." She gently snatched the list back and put it back in her pouch.

"Sounds like a plan." He bowed. "After you, lady."

Valerie laughed and pushed his head down playfully. "You big nerd." She leapt and her board formed underneath her feet. Danny watched her as she flew off, knowing he could catch up at any time. She laughed as the wind whipped at her hair before she started slowing down a little and turning.

"C'mon Phantom, or I'm eating the rest of those cookies!" She called back.

Danny felt his core flare, burning icy hot and shooting power through all of his limbs as he rose into the air. "I  _knew_  you'd betray me!" He answered back before flying towards her. She laughed and turned, angling her board for speed and calling her helmet forth once again.

Danny grinned as they raced, mostly because he couldn't stop himself. Maybe it wasn't really fair to think of Valerie as some sort of prize, but  _man_ , he felt like a winner.

* * *

_Valerie looked different. Her skin, which was already quite pale when she was in her ghost form, had taken on a chilling blue tinge. Her beautiful curls were no more, instead a bright white flame danced where her hair had been. Even her eyes were off. The previous green had always reminded him of life and energy. Now they simply looked poisonous._

_Danny tightened his grip on the weapon in his hand and steadied the hover board beneath his feet. This would be an easy execution. That monster wasn't Valerie. It was a shell of his friend. A mockery of everything she once was._

_She chuckled darkly at his resolve. "I'm impressed," Her fangs glinted in the light of the fires that surrounded them, "You look like you're actually willing to use that toy."_

_Danny kept his face neutral, but was surprised at her words. Was she really so far gone that she didn't remember this weapon? After all, she was the one that insisted it be made and that he be the one to wield it. "I'll do whatever it takes to keep Amity safe. Even if it means destroying you." He hoped his words sounded convincing._

_Valerie laughed. "Right. Always the hero, huh?" She cocked her head at him. "Of course, that could always change. What do you say Danny?" She flew closer to him, clawed hand reaching out. "Join me. You and I can conquer this world together." For a moment, just a second, Danny could see the old Valerie in her eyes. He could see hope. A twinkle of good humor._

_It made his chest tighten when it was gone as soon as it came. "You already know my answer Valerie." His finger moved to the trigger, an action she noticed with a smile._

" _I do, unfortunately. It's a shame though." Her hands began to glow green as she summoned her power. "We always were a great team."_

_Danny angled his board quickly, flying backwards and out of her immediate range as best he could. Her ectoblasts were bigger than he remembered, and he dodged them as best he could. It wasn't good enough though, as one of the blasts clipped his board and sent it backwards in a dizzying spiral. His death grip on the weapon in his hand didn't relent._

_As soon as he steadied himself again, he pointed the barrel towards her, already snap aiming. Valerie scoffed at the sight._

" _None of your other toys have worked against me Fenton. And this one won't be any different." She glared at him as if daring him to fire at her. He wouldn't though. He had one shot to take her down. He'd be patient._

_Valerie growled when no attack came. "What are you so afraid of?!" She yelled. "I'm not the same weakling I used to be! Are you going to use that thing or just stare at me some more?"_

" _Oh, I'm going to use it." Danny assured her, still making no move to fire just yet. He watched as she tilted her head in curiosity. When he saw her expression melt into one of frustration, he braced himself._

" _I guess I'll just have to make you." She said with a snarl. Her ambient energy flared around her, glowing brighter than he had ever seen it. He refused to let himself feel fear as she began flying towards him. He moved his foot slightly, readying himself._

_When she was moments away from knocking him clean off his board, he used his foot to active his most recent upgrade. The beam of light stopped Valerie in her tracks, freezing her completely. Her eyes flashed dangerously when she realized she couldn't move. Danny knew his little trick wouldn't last much longer. He'd have to do it, and he'd have to do it now._

_He hadn't anticipated how hard it would be for him to lift his arm and aim right at her core. "I'm so sorry, Val." He fired. A moment later, Valerie broke free of the beam, but he saw that she was already too late. She stared at him for a moment, visibly confused before looking down at the little dart sticking out of her chest. She pulled it out gently and held it in her hand, inspecting it for a moment before her eyes widened._

" _No…" She breathed, clearly remembering exactly what she had been shot with. Danny watched in horror as her eyes rolled backwards a moment later and she began falling out of the sky. When he saw she was doing nothing to slow her descent, he immediately flew underneath her and caught her halfway to the ground._

_She was eerily still in his arms, but she was still alive; he could tell by the way she still glowed. It was fading quickly though. He rushed them the rest of the way down to the ruined street, and when he was close enough to the ground, he stepped off his board and onto the pavement. He lowered them both down gently, resting on his knees as he held her._

" _Valerie?" He whispered as best he could through the lump in his throat. She seemed to come to slightly at the sound of his voice. She moaned softly, and with great effort managed to rest a hand on her chest where he had shot her. He looked down at the spot, and noticed that bright, glowing magenta spread out like veins from its origin in the center of her chest._

_His hand shook as he placed a hand over her's. "Valerie?" He tried again. This time she opened her eyes, and her gaze settled on him. There was nothing evil about her eyes now, he noted._

" _Danny?"_

_He nodded, not bothering to wipe the tears that had begun falling freely from his eyes. He watched as the magenta glow reached the top of her arms and legs._

" _I'm… I'm scared." She mumbled. Tears fell down her cheeks as well. Danny wiped them as best he could with his hand shaking so fiercely._

" _I know."_

_She shook violently. The magenta was at her knees and elbows, and it had stared crawling up her neck. "It… hurts." She said with a pained gasp. Danny simply held her closer._

" _I'm sorry." It sounded so weak, but it was the most genuine phrase he had ever uttered. He was sorry she was in pain. He was sorry he had to do this to her. He was sorry it had come to this. Sorry, sorry, sorry._

_She grabbed hold of his jumpsuit, and it broke his heart to feel how weak her grip was. The magenta had crawled its way up her face, and her glow had dimmed to almost nothing. She looked at him with eyes tainted pink. "I'm… Not." She whispered. Then she shattered._

_Danny threw himself backwards as she poofed out of existence, leaving behind no evidence she had been there._

_It was over. He realized, grief already seizing him. Everything she was, everything she had been to him was gone. Except for his memories, of course._

_Those he'd have to live with forever._

* * *

Danny gasped upon waking. He blinked rapidly when he felt tears in his eyes and wiped them quickly. All it took was a terrifyingly vivid dream, and he was suddenly very aware of exactly what he was asking Valerie to do for him.

He owed her for this, more so than he had initially thought. He stood up, grabbing the shirt he had hung on his desk chair and pulling it over his head. He walked out of his room, glancing down from the top of the stair and sighing when he saw Valerie was still sleeping soundly on the couch.

She was safe, of course. He knew that though. Valerie wasn't a half - ghost with a lot of dangerous potential and he wasn't a human hunter with the only weapon that could save them all. It was the other way around. He cringed at the thought.

He  _really_  owed her.

He tip toed down the stairs and walked over to her. She looked so peaceful when she slept. And yet, the opportunity to mess with his favorite ghost hunter far too good to simply pass up. Danny grinned to himself as he summoned an ice crystal. He was moments away from unfreezing it above her head when Valerie spoke.

"I'll rip your core out with my bare hands Fenton."

Danny cringed and dispelled the crystal with a puff of vapor. "Sorry." He mumbled, backing away. She sat up and stretched, humming in satisfaction when she felt her spine pop.

"So aside from your new death wish, how did you sleep?" She asked, standing and folding the blanket she used. Danny rolled a stiff shoulder.

"Fine, but I had this weird dream." He took the folded blanket from her and put in the linen closet. "Which reminds me," He said, turning around to face her, "I've been meaning to tell you that I owe you one hell of a housewarming gift for all you've been helping me with lately." It was probably literally the least he could do, but he figured it was a decent start.

Valerie waved a hand at him. "No need Danny, seriously. Although, if you'd like you can patrol by yourself for a little while so I can go talk to your parents about this weapon." She went to the front door where her boots were and began pulling them on.

"Right… Hey Val," Danny started following her grabbing her suit harness from its place on his coffee table and handing to her, "I don't think I've truly thought about what it means for you to have a weapon like this." Valerie took the harness from his hand and put it on, but not without giving him a strange look.

"So… you don't want this thing made?" She asked, tone measured. Danny knew immediately that he sounded incredibly suspicious. He back tracked quickly.

"No, wait, that sounded bad."

Valerie nodded slowly.

Danny flushed, rubbing the back of his neck in his embarrassment. "What I mean is that the weapon thing is a huge responsibility and I haven't really put much thought into what it would mean for you if you ever had to use it."

Valerie blinked at him. "Uh… are you going to tell me why you're acting so weird? Seriously Danny, I'm a little worried." Her eyes searched his in concern.

He shook his head. "It's nothing, Val. Just… I wanted to remind you that I appreciate you."

"Okay." Valerie said slowly. She gave him a slight smile. "Remind me never to leave you alone for so many years again." With that, she walked out of the house and closed the door behind her. Danny stared after her, still a little embarrassed.

But happy. Very, very happy.

* * *

One of the first things Danny did when his parents passed Fenton Works down to him was set up an alarm that would sound whenever a ghost tried to escape the Ghost Zone through his portal. Really, it was probably something that the family should have had put in a long time ago. Still, it allowed him to deal with some ghosts before they even left his house, so Danny figured that it was better late than never.

In retrospect, however, he realized he could have made the alarm sound less jarring.

He was pouring himself some cereal when the alarm began blaring, startling him enough for him to drop the box and spill cereal all over the floor. He sighed at the mess, but simply put the box down. He'd have to deal with it later. He transformed and floated through the floor to the basement.

He flew to the portals control panel and entered his code to cut off the alarm. Then he simply waited for whatever unlucky sap decided to disturb his lunch by trying to break out. He didn't have to wait long. He had ectoblasts waiting in his palm as the ghost stumbled through the now open door.

The figure didn't look completely solid, and Danny's ectoblasts dissolved harmlessly. He could tell that whoever this was, this ghost was not strong enough to be outside of the Ghost Zone.

"Hey," he called out to the figure, "I'm not sure I should be telling you this, but you definitely shouldn't be out of the Ghost Zone. You might dissolve your core if you stay out here."

The figure ignored him, moving closer before suddenly condensing into a far more familiar shape. Danny's eyes widened.

"Ember!? What are you doing? You know better than to leave the Zone before you're ready." Danny didn't hide his concern. Ember was another ghost that had backed off due to begrudging respect.

"Phantom!" Her voice was distorted. Danny knew immediately that something must be really wrong for her to use his name. "Please, please tell me you've seen Skulker. I'm getting really worried and I-"

"Woah, Ember. Let's have this talk in the Zone, alright? You can't hold this form for much longer out here." He grabbed hold of her translucent arm and pulled her with him through the portal. They came out the other side, and she was already looking more solid. Danny flew them over to a mass of land floating by.

When they landed, he noticed how run down and worried Ember looked.

"Please, Phantom. Please tell me you know where he is." Her voice was quiet in her despair. "I've almost run my core dry looking for him."

Danny placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "It's ok, Ember. I know where he is. I'm going to save him, I promise."

Her eyes flared at his words. "You know where he is?! And he's hurt?!" She tried to summon her guitar, but Danny could tell she was struggling to do so. He grabbed her forearms gently.

"Woah, Ember." He spoke in what he hoped was calming tones. "I do know where he is, and Red Huntress and I are already working to get him out of there."

Ember shook her head vigorously. "Obviously you aren't trying hard enough. Just tell me where he is and I'll go get him myself!"

"Ember," Danny's voice took on a tone of authority that he only used when he truly meant business, "There's no way you would survive if you try to get him yourself. The place is teeming with ghost hunters and you are weak right now. Have I ever,  _ever_ , left you guys high and dry? Even when you don't deserve my help?"

Ember looked away from his piercing stare. "No." She mumbled. Danny nodded.

"Exactly. And that's not changing. So I need you to relax. I'll get him back to you. I promise." He released her arms. Ember chocked out a sob.

"I'm just… I'm scared." She admitted quietly.

Danny sighed. "I know. I'm working on freeing him as fast as I can, but I have to be careful or we'll never get him back."

Ember scoffed, but didn't argue. "And the Red Huntress is helping you? I thought she hated your guts."

Danny frowned. "Hey, she hasn't _hated_  me for a while. And for your information, we are actually real friends now."

Ember crossed her arms and gave him a skeptical look. "Real friends, huh? And you're certain she's not just going to betray you? I mean, you don't go from enemies to friends overnight."

"It's been ten years!" Danny exclaimed. "And no, she's not going to betray me." He gave Ember a hard look. "Why do you care so much anyway?"

"It's been ten years already? Sheesh."

Danny crossed his arms. "Seriously, why do you care?"

Ember rolled her eyes. "Relax Baby Pop. I just wanted to know if I still had a chance at winning the bet."

Danny blanched. "Bet? What bet?"

Ember smirked at him and cocked her hip. "The one we started during one of the Christmas truces. I bet that Red was going to betray you sooner or later." Her face fell suddenly. "Skulker bet that you two would end up together. Like, as an item." She shook her head and smiled fondly. "The big idiot."

Danny gaped at her. "Wait, wait, wait. There's a running bet on how me and Valerie are going to end up? And the options are bitter enemies or a couple?" Ember nodded. "Who's involved in this?"

"Everyone."

"I'm sorry," Danny stuck a finger in his ear, checking to see if he was there was wax or something keeping him from hearing her properly, "Did you just say  _everyone_?"

"Yup," She began counting on her fingers, "Me, Skulker, Spectra, Walker, Lunch Lady-"

"That's enough." Danny said, holding up a hand and pinching the bridge of his nose. "Look, I'm working on getting Skulker back, but in the meantime, do you think you could avoid mentioning any of this to Val?"

Ember shrugged. "Yeah, sure. But you better be serious about getting Skulker back. If not, Red turning on you will be the least of your worries." Her eyes glinted dangerously.

Danny snorted. "You don't know her like I do." And with that, Danny flew back up towards the portal. Once he was far enough away from Ember, he smiled to himself.

Betrayal or romance, huh? Not the worst odds he's come up against.


	7. Chapter 7

Valerie wasn't entirely sure what she expected of the new Fenton Works. Part of her was really convinced that the Fenton's would use their newfound wealth to go ultra-sleek with their next lab. An all-white building with lots of glass and modernized furniture. Then she thought maybe they just built a replica of the old Fenton Works. Jack and Maddie were the sentimental sort, so really it wouldn't have surprised her.

What she did find when she had reached the building was not what she expected. She didn't know why, though, because she'd probably guess the building was theirs even if their name wasn't plastered across the front.

It was a small warehouse type building composed mostly of classic red brick, but from the right most end a giant metal structure bloomed out form the rest of the building, going from the side and then extending upwards to the top. She stared at the impressive structure with a fond smile. The Fenton's haven't changed a bit.

She deactivated her sled and walked up to the front door, which was made of the same metal as the building's addition. As soon as she was close enough, she felt the gentle tingle of multiple ectoplasm scans. A computerized voice spoke out loud. "Surface level ectoplasm traces detected. Ecto – signature recognized, identification: Phantom."

After the announcement, Valerie could hear the sound of a classic doorbell chime from within. She shook her head in amusement. The door slid open a moment later, revealing Maddie Fenton in her usual jumpsuit and a lab coat.

"Valerie!" She pulled the younger woman in for a hug, which Valerie returned. "You must've  _sensed_  that we were cooking up some new gadgets for you! Come in, come in!"

Valerie's eyebrows raised as she stepped in the door. The Fenton's had clearly decided that since they no longer had children to raise, they didn't have to devote as much room to living space as they had to previously. There was a small and simply decorated living room, and she could see the kitchen on the other side. There were a couple doors to her left that were surely a bedroom and bathroom.

To her right, there was an industrial level blast door and a decontamination chamber right outside of it. Next to the door was a panel that had a number pad and a fingerprint scanner. Maddie walked over to it.

"Jack and I definitely splurged a little when it came to the lab in this place." Maddie entered in a code and scanned her hand. "I think it's helping us with our empty nest syndrome." She said with a slight chuckle. The door slid open with a hiss of powerful hydraulics, and Valerie followed Maddie inside.

"Wow," Valerie said as she took in the room before her, "Looks like it was money well spent." The lab sprawled outwards, with row after row of lab tables covered in either analysis equipment or parts for any manner of ghost related weapon or containment unit. Further back Valerie could see a small conveyer belt system, where she assumed they produced the first few units of their new projects.

Maddie led her deeper within, coming to a stop in front of one of the lab tables. "We run experiments, build new gadgets, and create the first generation of prototypes right here!" She explained, eyes shining with pride. "There's hardly ever a dull moment. Danny's always coming here with something new for us to investigate. And then there's you, of course," indicating Valerie's suit, "We just love making new stuff for the Red Huntress."

Valerie blushed slightly as she smiled. "Well, I appreciate it." She looked around. "Where's Mr. Fenton?"

Maddie laughed. "When we realized it was you, he ran into one of the private rooms to finish up the gadget we were developing for you." She leaned on the table in front of her. "But you're not here for a tour, are you?" She asked, knowing look in her eyes.

Valerie blinked at her for a moment before sighing. "You caught me." She admitted, smiling sheepishly. She reached into one of the pouches in her belt and pulled out the little glass vial within. She held it up between them for Maddie to see. "I need you to help me with this."

Maddie blinked, and Valerie could already see the wheels turning in her brain. "Hmm. You want us to study it? See what it's composed of?"

Valerie shook her head. "If I had a bigger sample, maybe, but Danny and I already know what it is. It's extract from this ghost flower called a Blood Blossom."

Maddie put a hand to her chin. "Never heard of them." She frowned at Valerie. "So if you don't want us to study it…?"

"I want you to weaponize it." Valerie finished. "It's very toxic to ghosts. We haven't be able to test it, but we have reason to believe it can destroy a ghost's core. As in… a powerful ghost's core."

Maddie eyes widened. After a certain level, it was close to impossible to actually destroy a ghost in its entirety. "Oh, wow. This is a really powerful weapon we're talking about here." She took the vial when Valerie offered it to her, inspecting it in the light. "I guess what I don't understand is why. I mean, I know  _why_ , but Danny has yet to come up against a ghost he couldn't beat."

Valerie bit her lip. "It's a… tough reality to consider but… What if we didn't have Danny? For whatever reason?" It was a decent argument, Valerie figured. And a very good point, really. Maddie frowned at her words.

"I- yes. That's a… Good point that I hadn't..." She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment before looking up at Valerie with a tentative smile. "You're right. We'll get to work on it. It's always impressive to me how you are able to think ahead Valerie, even when that can be… Hard."

Valerie chuckled nervously. "Well, you know…" She would probably do anything to get out of this conversation. As if answering her silent wishes, Jack Fenton burst into the room, giant grin in place and large hands hidden behind his back.

"VALERIE!" He boomed, excitement clear in his voice. "Just the Huntress we wanted to see!" He covered the ground between himself and the two women quickly. "Do I have the gadget for you!" Without much pomp or circumstance, he revealed the object from behind his back.

Valerie didn't know what it was by sight. It definitely wasn't a gun, but it didn't look like a containment unit or explosive. Still, she managed a wide smile. "Wow! That's… uh…"

Maddie came to her rescue. "It's an addition for your hoverboard." She elaborated, slipping the vial in her lab pocket. "It'll help a lot with catching any quick, pesky ghosts. It's sort of like a tractor beam. It'll stop any ghost in its tracks long enough for you to capture it! Or, you know, destroy it. Whatever!" Jack and Maddie did their best to respect Danny's inclination to simply capture ghosts, but old habits die hard. Valerie smirked at that.

"I'll use it for the greater good, for sure." She gave Jack a hug. "Thanks for this." He eyes darted over to Maddie for a moment. "For everything."

Jack laughed and put a huge hand on Valerie's shoulder. "Of course! You're one of the best hunters of our time. Really, it's an honor for us!" He placed the device on the table before him. "Now, I say we eat some of the lunch Maddie made for us then you let us at that board of yours so we can slap this baby on there."

Valerie nodded. "Sounds great." She shared another look with Maddie as Jack hurried towards the door.

She was about to follow when Maddie reached out and grabbed Valerie's wrist gently. "Valerie," She began softly, "You have always been a very rational girl, and I really do respect that but I have to ask you to understand: Danny is my  _son_. And that kind of love isn't always rational."

Valerie swallowed as best she could around the lump in her throat and nodded. Maddie gave her a soft smile before releasing her arm and following Jack out of the lab.

Maddie was on to them, that much she knew for sure.

* * *

Danny's patrol had gone off without a hitch, and he had even caught another couple of low level ghosts. Suddenly his phone started to vibrate from its place in his boot. He landed on a nearby building and reached down to retrieve it. He glanced at the name on the screen. Valerie.

"Hey," he said as he answered, "How did it go with mom and dad?"

There was a sigh from the other side of the line. "Well enough. It actually only took about five minutes to convince your mom to make the gun."

Danny pulled the phone away from his ear and glanced at the time. "Val, it's been almost two hours since you left."

"Yeah, I know. Your parents insisted I have lunch with them and then they added an upgrade onto my sled."

"Oh yeah?" Danny sat on the edge of the building, allowing his feet to dangle over the edge. "What's it do?"

"It's pretty cool actually." He could hear soft wind noise as she flew slowly. "It's this beam thing that can, like, grab hold of ghosts while they're flying around. It's supposed to be able to keep them from moving for long enough to catch them."

Danny almost dropped his phone. "Wait, what?!" That sounded just like the thing from his dream.

"Oh, sorry. I don't think I explained it great. The really science-y explanation was over my head. You'd have better luck if they explained it to you, I think."

Danny fought to keep his breathing normal. "Right. Yeah. I'll talk to them." Or Clockwork. If anyone might know whether this was all a coincidence or his dream was actually some warped premonition it would be him.

"Cool. I'll go ahead and take up the rest of your patrol while you go talk to Laura. Text me where you left off." They already had a route from high school, and Danny still used the same one after she had moved away.

"Ok. I'll see you later." He hung up and quickly texted her where he was. He was still shaken as he took off towards the GiW.

His dream had been scary enough without bits and pieces suddenly becoming reality. With a sinking feeling in his stomach, he wondered what else would come true. He shook his head at the thought. There was no way he was going to go on some homicidal rampage, and he certainly wasn't going hurt Valerie in any capacity.

Clockwork would hopefully know what's going on, but first things first: He had to talk to Laura. Which wasn't a conversation he was looking forward to in any capacity. He could have gotten to the GiW facility much quicker, but he genuinely hated going there, and maybe putting it off would give him the chance to relax a little.

Too soon, the building came into view. Danny rolled his eyes as he felt proximity scans tickle his skin. He hated going to the GiW. He really, really did. In the back of his mind he knew the scans would identify him as a friendly and that there were several ecto-gun turrets powering down from their hidden locations.

He landed right in front of the doors, not surprised to see that Hayes was waiting for him. Usually he called Hayes before showing up to the facility, so he was likely very curious as to what he was doing there.

"Daniel." Hayes said as soon as his feet hit the pavement.

Danny crossed his arms. "Hayes." He responded in the same deadpan.

"What brings you here today?" He asked, subtly shifting so he blocked the doors a little better.

Danny rolled his eyes at the man's actions. "Relax, I came to talk to Laura. You know? My friend? I wanted to ask her if she wanted to see some of my parents' research on Spectra."

He couldn't see Hayes's eyes through the man's dark sunglasses, but he could tell from the way his brows furrowed that they were narrowed at him. "And that's all?"

"Yup," Danny raised a brow at the man, "Unless you have some ghosts contained for me to bring to the portal?"

Danny had to hand it to Hayes, his poker face was impeccable. "I don't. Proceed." He said, moving out of Danny's way.

Danny walked inside, a little disappointed but not surprised at Hayes' lie. Still, it was wishful thinking to see if he could get Skulker out by simply asking. He couldn't wait to get some solid evidence on him. The man could certainly stand to be knocked down a few pegs.

Before he was truly ready, he was at the labs. He was greeted with several kind hellos once he entered. Unlike the hunter population of the GiW, the scientists actually rather liked him. After all, he was pretty enthusiastic about answering any questions they had for him, and offering to look into any that he didn't know off the answer to on the top of his head. He glanced around, looking for Laura's signature bright red bun.

When he didn't see it, he walked over to her private lab. He hesitated in knocking for a moment, hoping she wasn't working on anything having to do with the Blood Blossoms. He steeled his resolve. Only one way to find out.

He knocked a couple times and waited, smiling to himself when he heard the sounds of papers falling and a soft "I'm coming!" From within. She was apparently messy as ever. Laura opened the door, face immediately brightening when she saw who it was.

"Phantom!" Her voice was giddy. "It's been a while! Come in." She stepped out of his way so he could enter, shutting the door behind him. "What can I do for you?" She asked with a warm smile.

Danny returned the look. "Hey, Laura." His eyes wandered over to the encased Blood Blossom, and as much as he'd like to simply talk without the circumstances, he remembered his goal was for his own protection. "I actually have something kind of important to discuss with you."

Laura blinked. "Oh, okay," She led him towards her office, pointing at a chair for him to sit in. She closed the door behind her sand sat behind her desk. "What's going on?"

"You met my friend Valerie, right?" He asked.

"Yes!" She answered enthusiastically. "Just yesterday, actually. I didn't realize you were friends."

Danny nodded. "Yeah, old pals." He smiled a little at his own joke. "She mentioned you were doing some research on Blood Blossoms." He said, getting right to the point.

"I am, they're quite fascinating."

"Right, and you're good at what you do, so I probably don't need to explain to you that they have… Dangerous potential." He leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees.

Laura's smile faltered. "Well, I actually don't quite know the full scope of the Blood Blossoms' 'potential', as you put it. You've clearly interacted with these specimen before though. Would you mind filling me in?"

"You know how difficult it is to extinguish ghost cores, don't you?"

Laura nodded. "Particularly more powerful ghosts. Like you, for example. It'd be nearly impossible."

"Right," Danny agreed, "Unless, for example, you had a very strong and very potent toxin."

Laura's eyes widened. "Oh no… Are you telling me that the Blood Blossom extract…? It could…?" She trailed off, horror already clear on her face.

Danny was counting on that. "Yeah. I mean, we can't exactly test it, of course, but I react badly to Blood Blossoms in all forms, so it's a pretty safe bet." His mind drifted to his dream for a moment, wondering if the effects of it would be like that which his subconscious had imagined.

"Oh my gosh. This is," Laura swallowed thickly, "A lot to take in. Did you come here to ask me to stop my research?" She looked willing, but upset at the prospect.

Danny shook his head. "No, not at all. In fact, it might be more beneficial if you keep up your research. What I'm getting at here is," He leaned in closer to her, voice dropping into a whisper, "If Hayes found out what you've stumbled upon here, he might try to take advantage of your research and create a weapon that could… destroy me."

Laura gasped, leaning backwards in her chair. "I'd never let him!"

Danny made a motion for her to calm down. "I believe you, Laura. But that doesn't mean he wouldn't just take your research from you."

"What should I do?" She asked, brows furrowed in worry.

"Well, best case scenario is that he doesn't bother asking you about them," He gave her a sympathetic look, "But if he did, and I really hate to ask this of you, you might have to lie."

Laura bit her lip. "Right. Lie. Sure, no problem."

Danny reached out and grabbed one of her hands. "Laura? Are you ok with that? I know I'm asking for a lot."

She shook her head rapidly. "No. I mean yes. I'm fine. It's," She squeezed his hand, offering him a small smile, "The least I could do for you, really."

Danny grinned back. He never expected for anyone to do anything for him simply because he saved them pretty regularly. He was a hero, after all. That's just what heroes  _did_. Still, it was nice when people decided to return the favor. "Thank you, Laura."

"Anything for you, Phantom."

* * *

"So she agreed? Just like that?" Valerie asked. She smirked when Danny simply shrugged his shoulders in response. "Geez Fenton, you must've put the  _moves_  on her."

Danny snorted as he turned onto the next street. "What  _moves_  are you referring to, exactly?"

Valerie laughed. "Act innocent all you want Fenton, but we dated for a few weeks. You know exactly what moves I'm referring to."

The duo had taken to Danny's car upon meeting up, choosing to drive over to the Box Ghost's usual haunt: an old abandoned warehouse in Amity's industrial district. There they would wait in the car until night fall when he was more likely to be active and snatch him up. Easy as one, two, three.

"It wasn't like that," Danny replied as he parked the car a little distance away from the building, "I just asked." His tone was clipped.

Valerie gazed over at him, eyebrows furrowing. "Geez, I didn't mean to offend you."

"No, you didn't…" He sighed in frustration. "Me and Laura actually did have a thing, once." He admitted.

Valerie's eyebrows raised. "Oh yeah?" she asked, inquisitive but not pressuring.

"Yeah, I met her as Phantom and I thought she was pretty and nice so I set it up so that she would run into Fenton."

"And how did that go?" Valerie asked as she reached into the backseat to grab their packed dinners and bottles of water. She handed Danny his sandwich.

He took it, fiddling with the cling wrap as he spoke. "Really well, actually. We went on a couple dates and everything was going great until a ghost attacked during one of them."

"Uh oh." Valerie was well aware of how that tended to ruin dates.

"Yeah, so of course Fenton had to find some lame excuse to leave so Phantom could save the day. I saved her right before she got crushed by a mini golf windmill. The second she noticed she was safe in Phantom's arms…"

"It was all over for Fenton." Valerie finished. She shook her head. "That really sucks man." She opened her sandwich and bit in, staring out the window as she listened.

"Yup. A couple days later she told me she wasn't into me romantically. It felt like a little too much of a coincidence." He shrugged, opening his own sandwich.

Valerie swallowed. "Why didn't you just tell her that you're also Phantom? She doesn't seem like the type to blab."

"I had thought about it, but… I don't know Valerie. I just thought that it might be nice to be with a girl who appreciates me as Fenton too." He sighed, staring down at his food but not eating. "It kind of makes sense though, you know? I mean, what do I really have to offer when I'm just Fenton?"

"Shut up Danny!" Valerie exclaimed, punching his arm. "You are nice, and smart, and good looking, and unbelievably caring. You have just as much to offer as 'plain old Fenton' as you do as Phantom. Maybe more." Her tone left no room for argument.

Danny stared at her with wide eyes, and he could already feel a blush creeping across his cheeks. "You… You really think so?" He asked, voice soft.

Valerie rolled her eyes. "Of course I do. In case you forgot, even when I hated Phantom, I really, really liked Fenton." She continued eating, clearly finished with the conversation. Danny just looked back down at the uneaten sandwich in his hand.

He did forget that a lot, it seemed. After all, Fenton and Phantom were one in the same. They were both him, and yet one seemed to be more universally liked than the other. It didn't usually bother him so much. He snuck another glance at Valerie. For all her rough edges, she sure knew how to make him feel better.

"Danny, if you don't start eating I promise you I'll take your food and eat it myself." Valerie threatened before taking a sip of her water and throwing her wrapper to the back seat. She waited for Danny to take a bite before speaking again. "We've got a good three hours before sundown. What do you wanna do?"

Danny swallowed the food in his mouth. "I've had a lot of trouble getting past this one level in Candy Crush if you want a shot at it." He suggested, already unlocking his phone.

Valerie rolled her eyes. "You're such a grandma." She held out a hand. "Let me see it."

He passed her the phone and continued eating. They sat in relative silence; a peaceful moment like the eye of a hurricane. Pretty soon they would be back to their usual nonstop routine of kicking butt and taking names, but for just a moment, they were allowed to just  _be_.

It was nice.


	8. Chapter 8

"Okay, okay," Valerie said, still giggling, "Would you rather not have elbows or not have knees?"

"Knees." Danny answered immediately. Valerie burst into laughter anew at his speedy reply. Danny joined in a moment later, attempting to explain himself through his amusement. "They're overrated!"

Valerie grabbed at her stomach. "Not all of us have the option to have a ghostly tail!" She insisted.

"Don't laugh because I'm more evolved than you."

Valerie snorted, recovering slightly from her previous laughter. "You're so stupid Fenton." She glanced out the window, noting that it was already dark outside. She and Danny had been talking non-stop since she lost all her lives on Candy Crush. Conversation had flowed easily, and as much as she would love to continue, night fall meant the Box Ghost would be out sooner or later.

Danny followed her gaze to the warehouse. "You ready?" He asked, looking over at her.

Valerie met his gaze. "Always."

They both got out of the car, Valerie calling forth her suit and Danny changing into his ghost form. He glanced over to see Valerie was staring at him. "What?" He asked.

"Where's that catch phrase of yours?" She asked, lips twitching.

Danny rolled his eyes. "I stopped saying that by like… the end of sophomore year."

Valerie shrugged, still smirking. "Too bad. It was kind of cute."

Danny opened the door to the backseat and grabbed the Fenton Net Gun, slinging it over his shoulder so it rested across his back. He lifted off the ground. "Yeah, right." He rolled his eyes. "I'm going to go in from the top." Valerie handed him a Fenton earpiece that they had programmed earlier. He put it in his ear. "Is this thing working?"

Valerie nodded as she heard his words from the speakers in her helmet. "Crystal clear."

"Good. I'll let you know where he is so we can corner him before he even notices." He responded. When Valerie gave him a thumbs up, he flew over to the warehouse, going both intangible and invisible and flying through the roof.

He glanced around, noticing a faint glow on the far left side of the warehouse. He flew in a little closer, and sure enough it was the Box Ghost, mumbling to himself as he inspected a large stack of wooden crates. Danny was pleased to see that there was a window slightly right of the containers.

He floated higher and began whispering his plan to Valerie. "There's a window on the left facing side of the warehouse. The one closest to the back of the building is just right of where Boxy's at now." He relayed. "You bust in here and shake him up, and I'll tag him with some Fenton netting. Sound good?"

"Got it. Moving to position by the window." She replied. Danny grabbed the net gun from its place across his back and armed it quickly.

"On my count. Three, two, one."

Valerie burst through the glass on her hoverboard, gun in hand. Her command that he surrender peacefully was barely audible as he screamed in shock. Danny held back a laugh as he aimed and fired the net. Box Ghost hadn't even had a chance to look up and see Danny was there before he was pinned to the ground.

The net glowed green as the specialized fibers activated. The Box Ghost would not be escaping any time soon. Danny landed gracefully next to Valerie, who was smirking down at their captive.

"Easy, Boxy," She said, resting her rifle on her shoulder and cocking a hip, "We're not going to hurt you."

Danny bit his lip at her promise. "Actually, we need your help." He elaborated. Valerie gave him a look, but he ignored it and crouched down so he was a little closer to the ghost.

"The Box Ghost knows not what you want from him, but he is willing to offer it in exchange for his freedom." He voice was just as loud and obnoxious as ever.

Valerie frowned and crouched down next to Danny. "Sorry, but freedom isn't an option for you right now."

Danny grabbed her arm and glared at her. "Val!" He looked back down at the Box Ghost, whose eyes had grown wide at her words. "What she means is that the help we need from you means that you may be imprisoned for a little while." Valerie snatched her arm from his grip, giving him a glare of her own.

"And why would I help  _you_  when I have a family to take care of?" He asked, struggling slightly under the net. Valerie drew back at his words.

"Family?" She repeated, looking over at Danny who groaned and hid his face in his hands.

" _Shit_. I completely forgot about Box Lunch." His words were muffled, but Valerie still heard.

"I'm sorry,  _who_?"

"The Box Ghost's daughter! The heir to his empire! A prodigy!"

Valerie balked. "His daughter!? He has a kid!?" She stood up.

Danny stood as well, crossing his arms. "Yup. Val, we can't send him in."

Valerie huffed. "I get that he's a parent and all, but he's perfect for what we need. Are you sure we can't just send him in anyway?"

Danny bit his lip before crouching down again. "Hey Boxy. You… You would do anything for your daughter, right? To keep her safe?"

"Of course I would."

"Right. Well, right now, your daughter isn't safe. No ghost is. But in order to make her safe, we have to send someone into the GiW's operation to see what's going on." Danny explained.

The Box Ghost was silent for a little while. "The Box Ghost will save her?" He asked finally.

Danny nodded, placing a hand on his back. "You'll be her hero. More than you already are."

"I'll do it. To protect my daughter."

Danny shared a look with Valerie and held his hand out to her. She grabbed the gun with the tracking fluid dart and placed it in his hand. Danny showed the gun to the Box Ghost.

"Alright Boxy," He explained, unloading the gun and showing the ghost the dart, "This is what we'll use to track you into the Guys in White facility. Wherever you go, we'll investigate. The second we figure out what they're doing and where they're doing it, we're going to get you out of there. Alright?"

The ghost was uncharacteristically silent as he nodded, never taking his eyes off the dart in Danny's hand. Danny stuck the dart into the ghost's arm and watched as the fluid within drained out. Once it was empty, he pulled it out.

"Thanks for this." He said, standing up so he and Valerie were both looking down at him.

"I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing it for my family."

Danny looked over at Valerie, whose face expression revealed her sympathy. She pulled the thermos from her belt and aimed it at the ghost before activating the beam and sucking him up. The duo stared down at the newly empty net on the floor.

"Danny," Valerie started, breaking the silence, "When did being a hero get so complicated?"

He shrugged in response. "I think it kind of always was."

Valerie hummed in thought before turning and making her way towards the exit.

Danny followed.

* * *

Something was up.

Valerie could tell from the moment she walked into the GiW building the next day. Everywhere she walked there were whispers and a general feeling of excitement. At first, she wondered if it was something she did. She ruled that out quickly, as she hadn't done anything particularly exciting all week, and certainly not this morning.

She and Danny had stayed out late, both of them too full of uncertainty to get any sleep. Even then they both ended up sleeping in that morning. Valerie offered to bring the Box Ghost in, and Danny agreed, mumbling about some other stuff he had to take care of anyway.

She hadn't questioned him about it, knowing he'd fill her in later if she asked. She grabbed the arm of the nearest employee as he rushed by. He blinked at her for a moment before recognition sparked in his eyes and he began speaking enthusiastically.

"Ms. Huntress! Can I help you with something?" He asked.

Valerie nodded. "Yeah. Why is everyone so… excited?"

He beamed at her. "You haven't heard? Oh wow! Hayes himself took out a ghost by himself this morning!"

Valerie's eyebrows shot up towards her hairline. "Hayes caught a ghost? There was an attack this morning?" It couldn't be possible. Between Danny's ghost sense and her multitude of scanners, there was no way they could have slept through a ghost attack.

She was supposed to be one of Amity's protectors. How many people had been hurt? Or worse? How could she live with herself knowing she let someone die because of her own carelessness?

"Oh, no. Hayes tracked it down and caught it before it could do anything!"

Valerie relaxed her grip in her relief. The man separated himself from her, and tried to be inconspicuous about straightening his uniform. "Where is Hayes now?" She asked. She held up the thermos in her hand. "I have more ghosts for him."

The man pointed towards the Holding Cells. "Last I saw him he was locking the ghost up." He gave her a smile. "I still can't believe it. I mean, he's so above hunting down his own prisoners, but he's still amazing at it."

Valerie had to put effort into not rolling her eyes. "Uh huh. Thanks." She began walking to the cells, halfway wondering if she had been granted clearance yet.

She wouldn't find out then though, it would seem, as Hayes was walking out of the restricted area. She walked up to him, question after question on the tip of her tongue. Instead, she held her thermos out to him.

"You're welcome."

He raised a brow at her for a moment before taking the thermos into his hand. "Why would I thank you for doing your job?" He asked.

Valerie shrugged. "I don't know. From what I heard you hardly need me."

He scoffed and began walking. Valerie fell into step beside him. "Everyone here seems to forget I was just a hunter once. It's always like this when I dust off my old hunting equipment."

"Who did you catch?" Valerie asked. They arrived at his office, and Hayes opened the door.

He turned to her, smirking. "Good work." He tilted the thermos in his hand. "I expect you to continue having success in all of your objectives." He shut the door behind him.

Valerie stared at the door, mouth agape. Hayes was bolder than he had ever been to her. Part of her was sure that it could be chalked up to a successful catch and leftover adrenaline.

The thought didn't help the uneasiness that settled into her gut.

* * *

Danny sort of liked the Ghost Zone.

For one thing, he could feel his core brighten immediately upon crossing the rift. This was obvious though, considering all of the ambient ectoplasm around him, replenishing his core instantaneously as he used his powers.

Even the darkness and lazily swirling ectoplasm was soothing in its own way.

Part of him hated how much he liked the ghostly dimension. It made him feel even stranger than he often did already. The greater majority of him, however, was kind of proud that he had finally developed a fondness for the place. It was always easier to fight for a place you cared about.

He found that his double life, or half – life, was a lot better when he simply accepted his ghostly half and stopped questioning his own mortality so much. There would always be new things to learn about himself. New sides to being a halfa. With something so fluid, he'd only stress himself out by worrying about it.

Clockwork's tower was in a sort of pocket within the dimension. There was no door that led to it, nor could the route be mapped out. When Danny wanted to speak to Clockwork, it was entirely up to the ghost who ruled time whether or not he'll be able to find the tower.

It used to feel strange, flying along aimlessly while waiting to see if he'd end up where he wanted, but now he found it sort of therapeutic. He could think about anything else he wanted while his subconscious led the way.

So he did. His thoughts drifted from reminding himself to call Sam and Tucker to see what the plan was for when they landed tomorrow to Jazz's text that morning letting him know she'd be back in town by 3 the next day to waking up on Valerie's couch and looking over to see that she had passed out still sitting up just as he had.

He didn't snap out of his reverie until he felt a chill run through his spine, a different feeling than his ghost sense. This was more like the feeling he got when he went into the Ghost Zone from the human world, and with that thought, he knew Clockwork had let him in. He simply flew straight ahead until the massive clock tower came into view, looming and ominous.

The large front double doors creaked inwards as he flew towards them, granting him entrance. They shut behind him as soon as he passed the threshold, plunging him into darkness, except for the soft glow from the main room ahead. Undeterred by the creepy atmosphere, Danny flew onwards.

The main area of the lair was as he remembered it, of course. Since it existed out of time, the only changes were a result of Clockwork himself. Said ghost didn't pause as he stared into a vison of another timeline at the sound of Danny's arrival.

"Hey Clockwork." Danny announced himself, though there wasn't any need for it.

Clockwork turned at the greeting, smiling and changing from a young child to an adult. "Daniel." He returned, a certain fondness in his tone.

Danny floated over to him, glancing around at the cogs and springs that flew by. "Love what you've done to the place." He commented, though he knew nothing had changed since the last time he was here.

"We both know you didn't seek me out to discuss my interior decorating prowess." Clockwork intoned, crossing his arms and assuming his elderly form.

Danny rubbed the back of his neck with a nervous chuckle. "Right." He straightened up. "I had this dream the other day, nothing to crazy right? But there was this gadget in my dream, one I've never heard of or seen before, and suddenly Valerie calls me the next day saying my parents just gave her that exact thing!" He shook his head. "I know it could be a coincidence but-"

"But you no longer believe in those, do you?" Clockwork asked, smirking. Danny simply nodded weakly in response. Clockwork hummed thoughtfully turning away as he resumed his adult form. "You do know I'm the ruler of time, not dreams?" He asked, calling forth a cog as he did so.

"I know," Danny flew up next to him, "But I thought maybe since the weapons lined up it was more like… a premonition."

Clockwork made a gesture and the inside of the cog swirled as a vision formed. "And you thought I may have sent it to you."

Danny shrugged. "I was kind of freaking out and it seemed like as good a theory as any." He explained. He watched as the image finished swirling and solidified into a clear picture. He immediately recognized the image from his dream. "That's… That's it!"

Clockwork morphed into his child form. "I know. This is an alternate reality. A timeline separate from your own. And your dream wasn't a dream or a premonition. It was a memory." He used his staff to point to the Danny in the vision. "His memory."

Danny blinked at the revelation. "Why did I get his memory?"

Clockwork gestured again, dispelling the image. "It happens, occasionally. That Daniel is still technically you, just under a very different set of circumstances." He began floating elsewhere, changing into an elderly man as he did so.

"So wait," Danny said, flying to catch up with him again, "That's it? It's not… It's not like a warning or something?"

Clockwork stopped, smirking over his shoulder at him. "Your timeline is as it should be, Daniel." He assured. "Now, if that's all you're here for…"He pointed his staff towards the exit.

"But…" He trailed off, already knowing that Clockwork had no intention of speaking on the matter further. With a sigh, he flew towards the exit. Just before he reached the hall that would lead him out of the lair, Clockwork spoke.

"It would do you well to enjoy the present and stop fearing so much for the future."

Danny froze at the words and looked back, but Clockwork had disappeared to somewhere else in the tower. That was awfully easy for him to say, since he already knew how everything played out. Danny huffed in frustration before flying out of the lair.

* * *

Valerie was already at Fenton Works when Danny returned from the Ghost Zone. He seemed a little surprised to see her in the lab, leaning against a table with her arms crossed.

"Val? What's up?" He asked her, going over to a panel to shut the portal doors behind him. His surprise left him almost as soon as it came. After all, this was  _Valerie_ ; he should have expected she'd know he had gone to the Ghost Zone.

"Hayes caught a ghost this morning. And he's acting strange." She watched two rings form at Danny's waist and travel upwards, leaving him human once more.

"Strange as in this ghost may have done something to him?" He asked, already heading over to the computer where he kept his ghost database. He began pulling up profiles of ghosts he knew to have mind control abilities or have been known to be able to alter emotions.

Valerie walked over to him, looking over his shoulder as he worked. "No, not really. He seemed… Like he was really giddy about catching this ghost."

Danny stopped his search, glancing over his shoulder at her. "Maybe he was just excited about getting back out into the field." He reasoned, hopeful, but not entirely buying it himself.

Valerie huffed. "I know, I know. Maybe I'm just looking into things too much." She admitted.

Danny snorted at that. "You're not alone in that, trust me." He continued typing at the computer, switching from the profiles to the tracking program. "On the bright side, we officially have a tracker in Hayes's operation, so we won't be questioning things for too much longer."

Valerie watched as he activated the tracking. "What about you?" She asked. "Did your thing go well this morning?"

Danny sighed. "Depends on your definition. I think we're in the same spot in terms of overthinking."

"Who did you speak to?"

"Clockwork," He glanced over at her, "Do you remember him?"

"The one who saved us from that future where you become evil?" She asked.

Danny cringed and nodded. "The very same."

She crossed her arms. "I thought you said he was pretty much useless for gathering information? Between his duties and his affinity for being really cryptic?"

"Yup. And wouldn't you know, he hasn't changed a bit." He grumbled the last part. With a few more commands, the computer lit up, showing a map with a blinking dot. The exact longitude and latitude of the tracker was shown on the corner of the screen. "There we go. We'll keep an eye on this and check out every place he gets moved to."

Valerie hummed. "How are we going to check those places out, anyway? I can't get caught and you might be able to be invisible, but that building has thousands of scanners that would still be able to pick you up."

Danny shrugged, standing up and stretching. "Let me worry about that. I've been looking into it already."

Valerie crossed her arms. "Whatever you say." She was about to suggest they go get lunch before patrolling when Danny's cell phone rang.

He looked at the caller ID. "Hayes." He told Valerie before answering. "Hello?"

She watched as his whole demeanor changed at Hayes words. "Danny? What's going on?" She whispered. His eyes were wide as he listened.

"Um, yeah, of course." He responded into the phone.

Valerie nudged him. "What?" She asked again.

He shook his head and held up a finger to her. Valerie swatted it back down. "How many?" Danny asked. Valerie bit her lip when Hayes's unheard response caused Danny to visibly deflate. "Yeah, I can go get it today… Right… No problem… You're welcome." With that he hung up.

He tossed his phone onto the nearest lab table before burying his face in his hands.

"Danny, what's wrong? What's going on?" Valerie asked again, growing more impatient by the second.

He looked up at her, hands dropping to his sides. "Hayes needs me to pick up some ghosts."

Valerie blinked. "What? Now? That… that doesn't…"

"Make any sense? Yeah, I know." He put his hands on his hips, staring at the unmoving dot on the map before him. "There's no way he could have known what we were doing. Hell, there's no way he would even know we were suspicious of him."

Valerie followed his gaze. "Well, maybe this isn't all bad. I mean, if he releases Skulker, then we'll end up with more information than we started with."

Danny shook his head. "I don't know Val, I mean, he wouldn't release them if they could just run and tell me what's going on at the earliest convenience." He glanced over at her. "We could've been wrong about this whole thing. About him."

"Well," Valerie began, resting a hand on Danny's shoulder, "At this point there's only one way to find out what he's done to Skulker."

Danny nodded at her before turning the computer screen off. Valerie wasn't sure if they had been wrong about everything or the Guys had caught wind of them investigating and shut the operation down or what.

But they were going to find out.


	9. Chapter 9

Danny didn't waste time retrieving the ghosts from Hayes. Valerie didn't like waiting, but it was all she could do until he returned. She tried distracting herself in the lab, looking around at the various half – finished projects until she stumbled upon some gun cleaning supplies. She hadn't had time to clean her weapons recently, and she figured now was as good a time as any.

She gathered the supplies in her arms and moved them to an empty lab table. She began pulling her weapons out of their hiding spots, piling them up next to the cleaner and rags. Once she was finished, she pulled a stool over and sat, wasting no time as she began taking a smaller blaster apart.

Valerie fell into a relaxing sort of rhythm like that, paying no mind to the time passing. She had just finished reassembling her first blaster when she felt a chill run down her spine. The temperature of the room dropped suddenly, and she clicked the safety off as she turned slowly.

"Hello?" She called, raising her gun. "Is that you Danny?"

No response. Danny would have answered back by now. Unless he was trying to play a trick on her. Ill advised, considering she was trained, packing heat, and paranoid. Danny knew all of this. It couldn't be him.

"Whoever you are," She activated her helmet and switched the view setting in her visor to thermal imaging mode, "Being invisible won't save you from  _me_." She slowly scanned the room.

Just as she saw a shape that she recognized as ghost like, she felt a dull thrum begin in the back of her head. It wasn't painful, per se, but it was foreign and odd. She felt herself grow angry at the feeling. Furious even. In her mind, she saw a memory of Danny flash. A literal second.

Then it was gone.

The thrum, the anger, and, Valerie noticed with a huff, the ghost. She deactivated her helmet again, noting how the room was no longer supernaturally cold. She didn't know if the ghost had done something to her. She felt completely normal.

The thought crossed her mind that maybe the ghost had just been unsuccessful in whatever it was trying to do to her. Maybe she had scared it off. She'd just have to tell Danny about it and see if he had any ideas.

Almost as if on cue, she felt the temperature drop. She once again reached for her weapon, but Danny reappeared and landed on the ground in front of her before it was even in her hand.

"So that was weird," Danny commented, "I see what you mean. Hayes was acting downright smug." He stared at the thermos in his hands. "It makes me anxious to talk to Skulker. See if we were really that wrong." He looked up at Valerie, who was visibly tense. "Uh… Everything ok?"

She shook her head. "There was another ghost here. Never showed itself. Was gone before I could do anything to it."

Danny blinked. "That's…"

"Weird, I know." Valerie finished.

Danny cocked his head. "And you have no idea who it could have been?"

Valerie shrugged. "You said yourself, there's a bunch of new ghosts around here. I'm fine though."

"Are you sure?" Danny asked. She still seemed stiff. She wasn't usually shaken up by ghosts. But then again she usually got the chance to fight them. This one's short lived attack left her unsettled.

"He… My head felt weird for a second. Then he was gone." She didn't mention the anger. She'd done a lot to reign in her temper since her freshman year of high school. It would be embarrassing if Danny knew she had gotten so mad for… whatever reason. Even looking back she wasn't entirely sure why. "It doesn't matter. I'm fine. Seriously."

Danny pursed his lips. "…If you insist." He looked at the thermos again before looking back to her. "You ready?" He asked.

Valerie nodded, activating her helmet. "Are we letting them out manually?"

"Yup." Danny answered as he made his way over to the portal. Valerie walked over and stood next to him as his hand rested above the 'open' button.

"Been a while since I've crossed dimensions." Valerie commented, sending Danny a sidelong smirk.

He grinned back at her. "You miss it?"

"Believe it or not, I kind of have."

With that, he pressed the button. The heavy doors slid sideways, revealing the swirling green rift that led to the Ghost Zone. Valerie activated her sled and flew through first. A chill raced down her spine, and even as her suit adjusted to the immense temperature drop, she still felt her skin tingle. Danny followed her in.

She watched as he immediately took a deep breath in upon entering, eyes shut. When he opened his eyes again, she noticed how the glowed a little brighter, and she could see his aura extend further than usual. Somehow the Ghost Zone made him seem more… alive. Ironic, considering the reason for that was because he was half – dead.

He began fiddling with the thermos in his hands, quickly reversing the settings so it released ghosts. He waved her over to him. "Stay behind me. Most ghosts fly off when I let them go but occasionally one or two is pissed and looking for a fight."

She obliged, pulling out a blaster as she did so. He pointed the thermos out towards the expanse of the world before them, and pressed a button. The effect was immediate. Ghosts began pouring from the container. Most of the ghosts flew off quickly once they were free.

The device beeped, alerting the two that it was empty. The flurry of ghosts cleared quickly after that, leaving Skulker and the Box Ghost staring down the two hunters. The Box Ghost looked over at Skulker in surprise. Skulker's intense gaze remained on Danny and Valerie.

"Did I succeed?" He asked tentatively.

Danny and Valerie shared a quick look before Valerie nodded. "Uh, yeah Boxy. You did great."

"Aha!" The ghost exclaimed. "Once again, the Box Ghost saves us all! I must return to my family and tell them of my bravery!" With that, he sped off to his lair.

A heavy silence fell between those who remained. It was Skulker who broke it as his eyes slid over to where Valerie was hovering beside Danny.

"Traitor." Was all he said.

Valerie balked. "What?!" Danny put what he hoped was a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"You heard me," Skulker ground out, "You're a traitor."

"To who?" Valerie sneered. "In case you've forgotten, I've always hunted ghosts."

"With honor. Integrity. And now you wear the suit of those who don't." He snapped back.

Valerie ground her teeth for a moment. "I do work for the Guys, because ghost hunting is what I do best and freelance doesn't exactly pay well. I don't need  _you_  of all people judging me!"

Danny cut off Skulker before he could retort. "Enough, Skulker. She was the one who told me something was going on that we needed to investigate. She was willing to risk her job to help me save you and anyone else the Guys took."

Skulker was still glaring at her, a look Valerie returned. Danny sighed.

"Skulker," He said, drawing the ghost's attention back to himself, "What happened? We're at a loss here. At first we were worried that you were being tortured. Dissected and stuff."

"Nothing of the sort. I was an informant."

Valerie furrowed her brows. "An informant?"

Skulker nodded, crossing his small arms. "They were looking for a specific ghost. Once they had deducted that I wasn't him, they were going to release me. Until the director recognized me. He figured that as a hunter I'd know what breed of ghost he was looking for."

"And what was that?" Danny asked.

"That's the thing, I'd never heard of anything like what he was describing. They thought I was lying, so he decided to keep me until I was willing to talk."

Valerie huffed. "What did he describe Skulker?"

"Some… Rage ghost."

Danny furrowed his brows. "A lot of ghosts are angry."

Skulker shrugged. "I know. I asked for more clarity. Like his powers. The man told me wrath was his power. It sounded like he hadn't encountered this particular ghost either. Like he had just read about it somewhere."

Valerie frowned and looked over at Danny. "Hayes just caught a ghost today. And then he suddenly releases his prisoners? He must've caught this thing!"

Danny winced at the thought. "That's not good. Hayes could be toying with something he doesn't understand. And if it gets out of hand…" He trailed off. "I'm sure we'd be able to beat it, I mean, Hayes did, but imagine the collateral. Angry ghosts can be… destructive."

Skulker watched them talk with little interest. "Are we done here?"

Valerie shook her head. "Not quite. When you were in your cell-"

"You're referring to the 'merciful' comment, aren't you?" Skulker interjected.

Valerie nodded. "That's how we got to thinking you were being tortured. It didn't make sense as an insult."

Skulker stared for a moment. "I know. It was meant to make you think that way."

Valerie blinked. "What?" Danny frowned, confused as well.

"Your director… He told me what to say to you in return for my freedom."

The duo froze at his words. Valerie couldn't find the words to speak, so Danny did instead. "How could Hayes have known Valerie was going to look at the cells?"

Skulker raised a brow. "Really?" He chuckled a little. "I hardly know you, Huntress, but it seemed so perfectly in character for you." His eyes narrowed. "After all, you were never one for trust, were you?"

Valerie felt her eyes burning, but managed to hold back tears. She tried to keep the tremble out of her voice when she spoke. "You mean to tell me he had this… contingency already set up?"

"He told me my mission the day you first met. Said it was only a matter of time before you found me. I wasn't exactly  _hidden_."

"Why?" Valerie snapped. Danny placed what he hoped was a comforting hand on her shoulder.

Skulker shrugged, looking entirely unbothered by her outburst. "To keep you distracted, I'd imagine. And it worked, since he apparently caught his ghost."

Valerie felt Danny's energy flare around her in time with her own shock and anger. "Why would you do this Skulker? Who knows what he's planning with that ghost! It could be in danger. Hell,  _Hayes_  could be in danger!"

Valerie rarely saw Danny get so angry. Her adrenaline spiked at his tone. She could see the lines of his muscle through his suit; a testament to his desire for a fight.

Skulker simply took in his rage with a dark chuckle. "I'm not bound to heroism like you. I don't know what he has planned for the cretin, and it matters none to me. I've grown to respect you, Phantom, but I care little for you. And I know you feel the same."

Valerie felt herself reacting instinctually, easily taking up the role of offering comfort. Her hand came to rest in between Danny's shoulder blades, settling on the tense muscles there.

"We tried to save you," Danny growled out through a clenched jaw.

Skulker scoffed. "But at little cost." He leveled them with a knowing stare. "Tell me honestly… If the stakes were higher, would you have been so kind?"

The silence between them was deafening. Valerie knew the answer to that, and she also knew that Danny would never say it aloud.

Skulker laughed. "That's what I thought."

With that, he flew off into the swirling depths of the ghost zone.

* * *

They had been sitting on Danny's couch in silence for about ten minutes before Valerie spoke.

"This is my fault," She mumbled, "It was  _my_  predictable behavior.  _My_  overthinking." She clenched a fist. "My sympathy for that monster."

Danny reached out and grabbed her fist, straightening it out in his hand. "Val," He looked into her eyes, "Never, ever think little of yourself for  _sympathy_. You were trying to do the right thing. That's no crime."

Valerie pursed her lips as she looked up at him. "Except now Hayes has this other ghost. And we don't know what that means because we spent all this time investigating the wrong thing."

Danny frowned. "Valerie. Hayes is no villain." He shook his head. "I talk bad about him all the time, but I'm biased. I don't like him. Never have. He's not going to endanger the city though. That much I know."

Valerie blinked at him for a moment before groaning and hiding her face in her palms. "And now I'm forgetting he's supposed to be our ally." She looked back at Danny, frustration evident. "When did I lose my touch? It's like I'm some overemotional rookie again."

Danny chuckled, pulling Valerie in for a hug she didn't know she needed. "We all make mistakes Val. Then we just… Keep going." He gave her a gentle squeeze as he nestled his face in her mussed curls. "It's what we've always done, and it's what we'll keep on doing."

Valerie sighed into the embrace, finding warmth in the hold even though Danny's body temperature ran a little colder than what was normal. "Thank you," She mumbled, "For everything. For a chance to have you in my life again."

Danny simply hummed, as no words were needed. They stayed like that until it finally felt a little easier to breathe.

"Maybe it wasn't what we thought but we still know more now than we did. And besides," Danny said as they pulled away, "I'm kind of glad we were wrong."

Valerie sighed. "You're right."

"Woah, can I get that as a recording?" Danny asked, grinning down at her.

Valerie snatched her arm - which had still been in his grip – away before standing and walking into the kitchen. Danny followed. "When are Sam and Tucker supposed to get here?" She asked, reaching into the fridge and pulling out a water bottle.

Danny pulled out his phone and glanced at the time. "Sam's supposed to be calling me when she lands so I can go pick them up. It shouldn't be too much longer now."

Valerie took a sip of water before speaking. "I'm sure they'll be thrilled to see me." She intoned sarcastically.

"I don't know about  _thrilled_  but I highly doubt they'll be hostile after so many years."

Valerie hummed as she thought. "At any rate, would you mind if I just stayed here when you left to go get them?"

Danny frowned but eventually nodded. "Nah, its fine. Besides, I'm not sure exactly when Jazz is going to get here so it would probably be good if one of us were here to meet her."

"Great." Valerie was genuine. She actually really liked Jazz. The older girl probably had more reason to hate her than anyone, since it was her brother Valerie had been hunting, but Jazz was pretty understanding.

She didn't agree with what Valerie had been doing, of course, but could see what brought her to it. Apparently Jazz had wanted Danny to tell her the truth for a while, insisting that talking about the situation would go a long way in making it better.

Danny didn't follow her advice until he was sort of forced to reveal himself to her. Valerie had been so angry that he hadn't said anything to her. That he just let her hunt him, not once considering what it would do to her if she found out the truth too late.

Jazz just  _got_  that. After the dust had settled and she and Danny had a talk (it didn't go well), Jazz had been the one to reach out to Valerie, suspecting right away that she couldn't just be  _fine_  with everything. Valerie hadn't kept in touch well enough to know exactly what Jazz was up to career wise, but she hoped that the older girl had gone on to be a psychologist like she wanted. She was a natural.

Danny's phone chiming interrupted their comfortable silence. The sound caused Valerie to look over at him, and she realized that he had been staring at her. As he answered the phone, she turned away to walk into the living room, blush staining her cheeks.

He was probably worried about how everything would go down between her and his best friends. After all, Sam and Tucker were much better at holding grudges than Danny was. She sat on the couch, deciding then that no matter how they reacted to her, she'd take it all in stride. They were only here for the weekend anyway, not to mention the fact that they are helping her and Danny out a lot by flying in.

Danny walked back into the living room, grabbing his wallet and shoving it into his back pocket as he spoke on the phone. "Yeah, yeah, I know Sam. Yes you're the best. What? But you… ugh fine. See you soon." He hung up, staring down at his phone for a moment before sighing.

Valerie snorted at his expression. "What's up?"

"Sam's making me get her some of her expensive vegan wine in exchange for her help this weekend." He answered. He grabbed his keys and walked to the front door.

"Ew." Valerie scrunched up her nose, an action that made Danny smile at its familiarity.

"I don't think it's fair of you to judge anyone's lifestyle choices Val." He commented with a smirk.

Valerie rolled her eyes. "Don't you have some hard earned money to throw away on weird alcohol?"

Danny stuck his tongue out at her, causing her to burst out laughing at the immature action. He blushed, but grinned at her all the same. With a final wave, he walked out of the front door, shutting it behind him.

Valerie settled into the couch, letting her eyes drift shut as she relaxed.

* * *

Valerie awoke to the sound of the front door unlocking. She sat up, stretching quickly and standing, figuring that Jazz had arrived.

"Jazz?" She called, moving to the door. It opened, revealing Jack's large frame. His face was uncharacteristically blank. "Mr. Fenton?" Valerie blinked at the surprise visitor. "What's up?"

He attempted a smile, but Valerie could tell it was forced. "Valerie. I just stopped by to drop this weapon off for you. Maddie and I are leaving for a convention in a couple hours." He entered the house, and she noticed the weapons case in his hand.

"Oh, cool." She shut the door behind him, following him deeper into the living room. "I can't believe you guys finished it so fast." She tried to sound casual, but Jack's odd demeanor made it hard.

"We already had the components," He explained, placing the case on the coffee table and opening it, "It was just a matter of replacing our usual stuff with this… extract." He held up the gun.

It didn't look special. In fact, she had another gun just like it. The only visible difference was a thin pink strip that decorated the side of the barrel. Jack stared at the gun for a moment, gaze flicking back and forth between it and Valerie. Finally, he set his jaw and handed it to her.

Valerie took it, hand shaking. "Thank you."

Jack stared at her, eyes more piercing than she had ever seen them. "It's no problem." He closed the empty case and picked it up. He made his way to the front door, still strangely quiet. He froze when his hand touched the knob and turned to look at Valerie again. "Valerie," He sighed, looking downwards for a moment before meeting Valerie's gaze with sad eyes, "Please… Please don't use that unless you have to."

And with that, he left.

Valerie stood there in shock for a moment. She had never,  _never_  seen Jack act like that. She knew without a doubt that Jack and Maddie had seen right through her. They knew exactly what the weapon was for. Who it was for. With a shuddering sigh she placed the gun on the table.

They didn't even know it was Danny who was so adamant on having the gun made. They probably thought she was the same slightly unhinged girl from years ago. The fact that they had still made the gun for her only proved their dedication to protecting the world and their trust in her.

She looked over at the family photos hanging on the walls. Images of a younger Danny with his family smiled back at her. There was so much innocence in his eyes. She tried to imagine a time where he wasn't worried about ghosts or the city or his own potential.

She couldn't.

It wouldn't be the Danny she knew if it weren't for all of that. Hell, she probably wouldn't have known Danny at all. The thought didn't sit well. For all their troubles he was one of her closest friends. He made her happy in a way she didn't even know she was capable of.

Valerie picked up the gun from the table, weighing it in her hands. She held it properly, staring down the barrel. She turned slowly, occasionally snap aiming on objects in her peripheral. Her gaze flicked back to the photos, and she turned her aim on a picture of Danny. He looked to be 7 or 8, with a missing tooth and a goofy smile. He held a model spaceship up to the camera.

She felt her heart clench.

Danny had chosen her to wield the weapon because he believed she was the only person he could trust that would also be willing to use it.

Valerie wasn't so convinced.

She felt a lump forming in her throat as she stared at the photo. Then she pulled her phone from her back pocket, dialing before her brain could catch up with her.

"Guys in White. How may I help you today?"

"I need to be patched through to Dr. Brannen."

There was silence on the other end. "I'm sorry ma'am, but a certain level of clearance is required to-"

"My employee I.D. is 0002251. I have the clearance. Please get me Laura." Valerie listened to the sound of the operator typing, surely checking the number.

"Of course Ms. Gray," The operator said finally, "One moment please."

Valerie listened to the hold music. She didn't know if this was a good idea or not, but she quickly decided that she didn't really care. She  _needed_  this.

"Valerie?"

"Laura!" Valerie winced at her own volume. "I'm so sorry to bother you, but I really need your help."

Laura sounded unsure. "Um… What do you need?"

Valerie began pacing. "You've done a lot of research on these Blood Blossoms, right?"

"I have," Laura confirmed, "Why?"

"I have this idea… I'm not sure it's possible but I figured that if anyone could figure it out it would be you." She walked up to the picture of Danny and stared at her reflection in the glass.

"…Oh?"

Valerie could hear the interest in the other woman's voice. She smiled.

Who was Danny to tell her what to do anyway?


	10. Chapter 10

By the time Jazz arrived, Valerie had already put away her newest weapon and dealt with her raging emotions.

She found herself surprised by her excitement when she heard the front door unlock and Jazz's voice calling out. "Hello? Danny? Valerie?"

Valerie rushed in from the kitchen, smile on her face. "Jazz." She greeted. The other girl returned the look before walking up to her and pulling her in for a tight hug.

"Look at you!" Jazz pulled away, holding her at arm's length. "You're gorgeous!"

Valerie laughed. "Speak for yourself."

Jazz looked fantastic. Her hair was as long and glossy as ever, and she was wearing a pair of glasses with blue frames that made her look intelligent and stylish. "How have you been?" She asked, tossing her bag onto the nearby recliner.

"Pretty good, actually. Danny has a lot to do with that though. I wasn't looking forward to moving back to Amity but he's made it bearable." Valerie walked over to where Jazz had set down her suitcase, lifting it up so she could bring it to her old room.

"I'm so glad to hear you two are getting along. He was so nervous when he found out Hayes was transferring you here." Jazz picked up her smaller toiletry bag and began leading the way upstairs.

Valerie blushed at Jazz's words. "He was?"

Jazz snorted as she opened the door to her room. "Oh yeah, and don't let him tell you otherwise." She sighed as she walked in, eyes shining with nostalgia.

"I didn't realize you two were so close now." Valerie set down the suitcase.

Jazz smiled. "It's really great, you know? It used to be so hard to get him to tell me anything. Now I'm the first person he calls. It's all I wanted for our relationship."

Valerie nodded. "I'm happy for you. I'll let you get settled. See you downstairs." She walked out of the room, already feeling much better. In that moment, she knew exactly why Danny had called Jazz to help them out.

Really, she wasn't much help out in the field. Her only instinct out there was protecting her brother, so despite the fact she was a pretty decent hunter, she often didn't pay any mind to plans or being wary of property damage.

Danny had to insist that she'd be more help from within the Fenton Lab over coms, alerting them of any weaknesses she could find on their opponent within the massive database they had been building over the years.

Her most critical role, however, was definitely her ability to instill a sense of calm and surety. Valerie lost track of the amount of times a hasty pep talk over the coms from Jazz has helped her out of a funk. With as big a sting as this weekend was sure to be, a calming presence would be a huge help.

Valerie flopped back onto the couch downstairs, pulling out her phone as she waited for the rest of the party to arrive. She just hoped Danny had actually told Sam and Tucker that she would be there. Then she dismissed the thought as quickly as it came.

Danny wasn't  _that_  big of an idiot.

* * *

"YOU REALLY THOUGHT IT WOULD BE A GOOD IDEA TO WAIT UNTIL I WAS ALREADY HERE TO TELL ME THAT VALERIE MOVED BACK?!" Sam punctuated her furious words by smacking Danny with a small travel pillow every few words.

"Sam, I'm literally going to crash this car and kill all of us if you don't stop." Danny winced as the pillow smacked him again, and he visibly struggling with the instinct to shield his face instead of driving. The car swerved slightly from his lack of concentration.

"Um, not to try to butt in on your fight but I actually want to live," Tucker interjected from the back, where he held onto the seats with a white – knuckled grip.

"Sam, c'mon. Do you seriously still not like Valerie? Even though you haven't seen her in like, five years?" Danny attempted to reason with his friend, but Sam wasn't finished chewing him out just yet.

"I needed to mentally prepare for unknown levels of her superiority complex and now I won't even have anything witty to respond with when she starts boasting." Her tone was calm, but Danny could still sense a storm brewing.

"Are you really one to talk about a superiority complex?" Tucker mumbled from the backseat.

Sam heard. "Oh don't you start defending him blindly." Her gaze was hard as she turned to him.

"Sam," Danny interjected before Tucker could retort, "Valerie has changed a lot. Grown up. We all have." He gave her a sidelong look, eyes pleading and lips pouty. "Just give her a fair chance? I really think you guys might hit it off."

Sam frowned. "Does she know I'm coming?"

Danny nodded. "Honestly I thought she'd be the more volatile one about it."

"And she wasn't?" Sam raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

Danny shook his head. "Not that I could tell. In fact, she seemed worried about how you would react to her."

Tucker snorted. "Valerie? Worried about what someone thinks of her? Are you sure she's not, like, possessed or something?"

Danny rolled his eyes. "From what I've noticed, she presents whatever you give her. So if you're standoffish…"

Sam sighed. "She'll be the same. I'm going to give this an honest chance for you Danny."

"That's all I ask," Danny said, already grinning.

Tucker hummed from the backseat. "So, now that that's out of the way," He leaned forward and angled his gaze towards Danny, "Is she still…" He made an hourglass curve with his hands.

Sam scoffed loudly. "Seriously Tucker," She shoved him playfully to the backseat, "What would your girlfriend think of you talking like that?"

"Hey, just because Abha is the love of my life doesn't mean I can't appreciate the aesthetics of other beautiful women. She even encourages it sometimes!"

"Isn't that because she's doing a study on men's brain chemistry?" Danny asked, glancing at Tucker in the rearview.

Tucker crossed his arms and leaned back. "The point is, I can love Abha and appreciate other girls just fine."

Sam rolled her eyes as Danny chuckled. He was glad that the years and distance hadn't affected their friendship or their dynamic much at all.

"And for the record Tuck," Danny said, eyes a little wistful, "Valerie is as gorgeous as ever."

Sam snorted at that, while Tucker let out a soft chuckle. "Sounds like he's under her spell again Sam." Tucker joked, nudging her. Danny's face flushed red.

"Chill out Tucker, it's not like that," Danny insisted.

Sam gave him a knowing look. "Whatever you say Danny, but if you're lying we'll know."

"You can't hide anything from us," Tucker sing-songed.

Danny cringed, knowing that his friends' words weren't a bluff. Still, he couldn't help the joy he felt, knowing they were all together again, even for this short time.

"Alright Tucker," Sam began, "We have way more important stuff to worry about. Like Hayes. What's going on?" She and Tucker both focused in, demeanor visibly changing.

Danny could only sigh. "It's a lot, and me and Val still aren't sure what's going on. We think he has some plans for this new ghost we haven't heard of."

Sam shrugged. "So? I mean, I know you aren't fond of him but he's not exactly a bad guy."

Danny nodded. "True. But there's… He went through a lot of trouble for this ghost. And kept a lot of secrets. Why?" He wished he knew the words to portray the unease that had settled over Valerie and himself recently.

The car was quiet for a moment as they pondered that. Tucker spoke up after a while. "Ok, I'll be the one to say it." He took a deep breath as if he was bracing himself for his next words. "Danny, you and Valerie have to be a couple of the most intense people I have ever met. Seriously. And I'm sorry, but maybe we're getting too old to believe everything is part of some larger conspiracy."

Sam bit her lip. "It's not that we don't believe you Danny. It's just that… I mean, we have a mission for this weekend. We have to round up these loose ghosts. Me and Tucker… we don't necessarily have the time to launch a full scale investigation that may or may not have any merit."

Danny was silent for a moment as he processed their words. He and Valerie had already been having doubts, but now, with an outside perspective, he wondered if they really had been wasting their time. "I'm sorry you guys." He shook his head. "I guess… I forgot you guys kind of got away from all this, you know? We have our mission for this weekend. Let's do it."

Sam and Tucker shared a look at his words, both unsure of what else to say.

They went with nothing.

* * *

Valerie had thought about her first words to Sam and Tucker a lot in the short time Danny was gone. She wondered if she should try to act as though their history was just that, or formally apologize for everything they never talked about.

In the end, Jazz sort of made the decision for them all.

The trio had barely stepped foot in the door when Jazz swooped in, grabbing Sam under one arm and Valerie under the other. "Alright, we're all here! I say we go out to dinner!"

Danny was too busy grinning at the sight of his sister to notice how stiff Valerie and Sam were under her grip. Valerie glanced past Jazz to Sam.

Valerie wasn't really sure what to expect when she saw her. She thought maybe she'd immediately feel disdain, fresh and intense as it was back in high school. Or maybe even jealousy. After all, she and Danny had really managed to build up their own dynamic in the short time she had been home, but his and Sam's relationship had time and hardship behind it that made it strong.

Neither of those feelings came to her though.

In fact, she felt her cheeks heat up in embarrassment. Seeing Sam, as a grown woman, reminded her of the time that had passed. Reminded her how small their outlooks had been when they were young. The other woman was looking at her just as intensely, perhaps thinking the same thing.

"Atlas has a really good vegan menu." She offered, partially as a real suggestion and partially as a metaphorical olive branch.

Sam blinked at her for a moment before offering a small smile. "Yeah? I've never been." She took the offer of peace, then.

Valerie nodded, feeling light as she continued. "Yeah, it opened a couple years ago. I tried it with my dad when I came to visit." The short, but pleasant, conversation left her feeling a little warm from the inside.

Both girls looked out to see if anyone had any objections, and noticed for the first time that the entire group had been staring at them. Danny and Jazz looked thrilled, while Tucker did little to hide the surprise in his gaze. Valerie rolled her eyes.

"What's wrong with you guys? We're  _grown women_." She knew exactly why everyone was surprised. And as she caught Danny's gaze, she could tell exactly how much it meant to him that they were going to try.

Sam nodded. "Exactly. What were you expecting? A cat fight? Come on Valerie." She reached over, grabbing Valerie's hand and pulled her out from Jazz's hold. Valerie could almost imagine how this would have felt years ago. She thought of how she might have snatched her hand away, as a sign that friendship was far more hard won than agreeing on a dinner spot. Just the thought felt stupid to her now.

The women led the way out of the door, chatting casually as they went.

Tucker broke the silence between the other three with a snort. "What do you know? They do have at least one thing in common. They  _love_  proving us wrong."

Danny laughed at that before pulling Jazz in for a quick hug. "Sam and Val have a lot in common," He said as he separated from his sister, "Why do you think they hated each other so much?"

Tucker watched as the two women spoke to each other as if they had been long time friends. "So you really think them pretending like they actually like each other will be enough for them to get along?"

Danny shook his head, clapping Tucker on the shoulder. "Not at all, actually. But knowing them they'll take it so far that they'll end up talking more and realizing that they actually could be pretty good friends."

Jazz chuckled. "I told Danny this would happen. He just still doubts that I'm a genius for some reason." She grabbed her purse, slinging it over her shoulder.

Tucker snorted. "I mean, of course you knew, you're a psychologist."

"Psychology definitely doesn't cover how being a super hero affects interpersonal relationships Tucker." She grabbed Danny's arm, pulling him down to her level and whispering in his ear. "We need to talk. Mom and Dad called yesterday." She was still smiling, but Danny could hear the tension in her voice. Something was wrong.

He watched as Tucker left them to go stand with the girls, joining their conversation. "A lot's been going on. Mom and Dad are overthinking things. I promise you that everything's under control."

Jazz squeezed his arm. "I thought we told each other things now Danny."

"We do Jazz," He put a hand over hers, "But there's nothing to tell. Mom and Dad are stressed, just like me and Val are. It's just because of our responsibilities and stuff, you know?"

Jazz frowned, letting go of her brother. "I'm going to trust you, Danny. Don't make that a decision I regret."

With that, she gave him one more intense look before slapping a smile on her face and rushing to catch up with the others. Danny sighed to himself before doing the same.

* * *

Danny had grown sort of accustomed to being alone, and though he was glad it wasn't the case so much anymore, he found himself escaping upon returning from dinner.

It had really gone better than he could have hoped; casual conversation and planning blending together in a way that was distinctly  _theirs_. Even with the comforting familiarity, however, he could sense the tension between Sam and Valerie as they attempted to ignore the past. He noticed how Jazz would start to stare at him occasionally, face twisted with worry. He saw Tucker try to engage as he would've years ago, all while trying to be sneaky when he went check his phone for messages from his girlfriend or his job.

As sat on top of the roof of the lab, eyes tracing the constellations he could see, he wondered if he'd always mourn the past.

He heard the tell-tale sound of the roof access banging open. He didn't have to turn to recognize the sound of Sam's heavy boots hitting the metal as she walked towards him. She sat next to him, pulling her legs close and wrapping her arms around her knees. He watched as a chill ran up her spine.

He recognized the reaction of a human who encountered a ghostly presence. He wasn't sure if it was his human side or his ice core side that gave him a decent amount of control over whether not he had that effect. Still, he resisted the urge to reign his aura in. It could be draining to do, and he knew Sam wouldn't care either way.

"Are we going to piss around or do you wanna get right to the good stuff?" She asked, never turning to look at him.

He snorted, giving her a sidelong glance. "The way you said that… it's almost like I actually had a choice."

"Thanks, I've been working on that one for about twenty minutes. So… How is it?"

Danny shrugged. "It's Valerie. But… there's something so different."

"Mmm. Maturity suits her." Sam agreed.

"It suits us all, I think." He pulled gently at the locket around Sam's neck, flashing her a teasing smile. "What about you? How's everything going with Raina?"

She swatted at his hand, but the grin that spread across her face ruined the effect a little. "Don't you try and distract me, we're talking about you. And Raina is still the best girlfriend anyone could ask for."

Danny pulled away. "What else do you want to know? Me and Val are getting along better than ever."

"It's more than that though," Sam leaned back against her palms, "Throughout dinner, while we were talking strategy, you guys kept looking over at each other, doing little signals. I noticed. So did Jazz. I don't know what's been going on, and frankly, it might not really be any of my business. But, you know, I was curious."

Danny gave her a confused look. "Signals?"

Sam looked over at him to gauge his expression. When she saw how genuine his confusing was, she gave a long suffering sigh. "You are so dense sometimes. So you guys just learned how to read each other's minds and you haven't even noticed?"

"I wasn't 'reading her mind'. She and I just have the most complete idea of what's going on. It's just a different level of understanding is all."

Sam raised a brow. "Uh huh. What about this big secret you guys are holding on to? Is that what you and Jazz were talking about earlier?"

Danny stared at her in shock. "What?! Me and Val don't… What makes you think we have some secret?"

Sam rolled her eyes. "Chill Danny, you've never been able to hide things from me. Every once in a while one of you would start telling us about what's been going on, then you'd get to some point in the story where you stop, look at each other, and jump to some other point."

Danny frowned. "Jeez, really?"

"Yeah, really. So what is it?" She glanced behind them to make sure no one was around before dropping her voice to a whisper. "Are you guys having sex?"

"What?! No!" Danny's eyes shot over to the roof access, as if he expected Valerie to appear and slap the blue out of his eyes for allowing such a thing to be insinuated.

Sam giggled at his reaction. "Relax, it was just a question. I just thought with all the goo goo eyes-"

"Goo goo eyes?" Danny asked, turning to look at her again. "I have not been giving Val the goo goo eyes."

Sam gave him a skeptical look. "Whatever you say. So if it's not a torrid affair…?"

"It's nothing, Sam." He fiddled with his fingers in his lap. "She and I… We've just hashed out a lot of our old worries and problems and stuff. The gaps that you're referring to are just omissions of long talks."

Sam pursed her lips. "I'm not sure if you're telling me the truth. Which is fine." She stood, dusting off the back of her pants. "I shouldn't expect for you to tell me literally everything anymore. But I do want to make sure that you guys aren't doing something stupid."

"Something stupid?"

"I don't know if you've noticed this Danny, but sometimes you two try to out noble each other. Like a game of who can be the most tragic hero. I just want you guys to be safe. Sacrifice isn't always the name of the game, you know?"

Sam had always been one of Danny's favorite sources of wisdom. He didn't always ask for her opinion, but she was never afraid to offer it, and she tended to care about his well-being a little more than he himself did. He gave her as reassuring of a smile as he could manage.

"We're fine, Sam. Like I said, we've worked through a lot. We're… really ok. Promise." This much was genuine. Although the weapon had sat on their minds heavily, he couldn't help but feel like this level of trust between them had moved their relationship forward.

At the end of the day, it gave them both a little peace of mind.

Sam stared at him for a little longer before nodding. "I believe you Danny. You're an adult. You both are. Just… Be careful. Adult or not, you're dealing with more than most people do." She tucked her hands in her pockets, looking back up at the stars as her settled his gaze on her face.

"Do you ever miss it?" He asked. "Dealing with all this?" He didn't ask if she missed him, or them together. Even so, it felt a little like he was.

Sam pursed her lips in thought. "Sometimes… I wonder what it would've been like to stay. To keep doing this stuff. But I don't miss the past. It can stay there, and I'll always cherish it, but I don't miss it." She looked down at him. "Do you wish you did anything differently?"

Just as Danny was about to answer, the duo heard the roof access open, and Valerie stuck her head out from below. "There you are Danny." She grinned as she met his gaze. His heart fluttered as he returned the look. She looked over to Sam, who watched them with amusement clear on her face. "Hey Sam, you mind if I steal him away for some flying?"

Sam shrugged. "Not at all. Have fun." She began walking away when Danny tapped her leg. She stopped and looked back at him.

"To answer your question: No. No I don't." His eyes trailed back over to Valerie, who had climbed onto the roof and begun checking over her board.

Sam followed his gaze. "I'm glad. I hope it all works out for you."

He looked up at her, grinning. "Yeah, me too."

And with that, the best friends separated.


	11. Chapter 11

He and Valerie mostly just sat in silence following their not-so-daring escape from their reunion/planning. They had retreated to the grassy hill from Valerie's first day back for a little moment of peace.

It was kind of nice, since any other time he had any one-on-one conversation that day it had ended in a lecture about his and Val's self-destructive tendencies. Which was really inaccurate, when he thought about it.

Valerie wasn't self-destructive in the least. She was fiery and determined and more than anything  _good_. That he believed. As for himself… He couldn't deny his past actions. In high school, it was almost as though his personal life mission to make his own existence as difficult as possible.

Things were different now.

"Everyone's trying to match who we used to be to who we are now." This part he said aloud. Valerie hummed from her place next to him. She looked calmer than she had in days, arms splayed out as she rested on her back and stared up at the stars Danny loved so dearly.

"I've noticed. People keep treating you like a ticking time bomb. They look so surprised when they realize you're not on the verge of doing something stupid or dangerous." Her eyes met his as they shared a smirk.

He poked her side gently. "Look who's talking. Every time you and I stray too far from everyone else someone has a mini panic attack wondering if you've lured me off to finally finish what you started."

She sighed at that. "Is that it for us? Will we always be the time-bomb and the crazy hunter?" She seemed a little upset at the prospect.

Danny shook his head. "Nah. We've already proven to ourselves that we aren't that. Proven it to each other too. I chose to trust you with that weapon, Val. I think that's the least self-destructive thing I've done in a long time."

Valerie sat up at that, eyes wide. "You really mean that?"

"I do." Danny said, nodding at her. "It doesn't matter what or who they think we are, you know? I don't care what they think of me. I care about what  _I_  think of me. And I think that I won't become some monster that you have to use that weapon on."

Valerie pursed her lips. "Then why have it made in the first place? Why even risk it?"

Danny shrugged. "It never hurts to have a back-up, but most importantly, I think  _you_  need that thing more than me."

"Huh?"

"Just like I know what I am, you need to know who  _you_  are." He turned, cupping her face in his hands. Maybe to drive the point home. Maybe because he's wanted to do so for a while now. "Valerie Gray, you are one of the most talented hunters I have ever met, and you are the only one strong enough to know when and if you need that weapon."

Her eyes glistened as tears pooled. He watched with fascination as she tried to blink them away. He expected her to deny his words, maybe even deck him for making her cry. She didn't do either. "Thank you."

He pulled her in for a hug, which she returned with gusto.

And if he felt her wipe her eyes on his shirt, well, they weren't going to tell anyone about this moment anyway.

* * *

"Have you even practiced _once_  since you moved away?"

"No, but this kind of stuff is like riding a bike! You never forget!" Tucker mimicked shooting random targets throughout the lab with the blaster in his hands.

Sam rolled her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'm not worried about you forgetting, I'm worried about you sucking."

Tucker made a noise of indignation. "I do not SUCK!"

"Well you're going to." Valerie joked as she tossed Tucker a thermos. "You're with Danny. He'll engage and you'll clean up behind him."

Tucker groaned. "You don't have to make it sound like I'm some lame sidekick or something."

"But Tucker," Danny threw an arm over his friend's shoulder, "Without you I wouldn't even  _have_  a lame sidekick. We wouldn't want that would we?"

Tucker was about to retort when Jazz walked down the stairs. "Alright everyone, let's stop messing with Tucker and get to work." She walked past the group of friends and booted up the lab computer. "Do we all know what role we'll be playing here?"

Danny nodded, walking over to his sister's side. "Yup. Tuck's with me, working the thermos. Sam and Valerie are going to start on the other side of town and do the same. We'll meet in the middle and hopefully by then we'll have cleaned up this city a little bit. Jazz, you'll be here on support, right?"

Jazz nodded. "Yes, I'll be on the headset with all of you. I've already picked through the files Valerie brought and sent the last reported locations of the ghosts to you guys. Remember to clear the area before engaging. The last thing any of us want are civilian injuries."

Valerie stepped up. "I've already talked to Hayes about what we're up to, and I have a direct line should we need some GiW support."

"Alright then team," Sam said, hoisting a Fenton Bazooka over her shoulder, "Let's go kick some ass."

She and Tucker walked over to Jazz to grab their headsets. Valerie moved to follow them when Danny stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, please keep an eye on Sam. She's talking big and I know she goes to ranges all the time to practice her aim but… Ghost hunting a trickier game than that. She's rusty. So is Tuck."

Valerie nodded, patting his hand with her own. "Of course."

He smiled at her before fiddling with the COM device in his ear. "How did you get Hayes to agree to something like this anyway? He hates outside help."

Valerie blinked. "Really? I mean, I was expecting a lot more push back than I got, that's for sure. Does that worry you?"

"Honestly," he glanced back up at his sister and best friends, all sharing a laugh at Tucker as he struggled with the thermos strap, "a little bit. But I can't keep working for the guy if I'm just going to distrust everything he says and does. And neither can you."

"I know, which is why I cleared the whole OP with him when I went for my assessment this morning. I just… I hope we really were wrong about him."

"Yeah, me too."

Valerie moved to walk away before pausing and turning back to Danny. "And, uh, be careful. I don't like that I won't be there to watch your back. I mean, not that I don't trust Tucker but-"

"I know," Danny said, cutting her off, "Me too. Stay safe." He walked over to join the rest of the group.

Valerie bit her lip in thought. She had been toying with an idea, but after the talk she and Danny had last night she wasn't sure if such a thing was necessary. She had even gone so far as to lock up the Blood Blossom weapon, though she had initially intended to always carry it with her from now on.

But then again, if she really wanted to keep Danny safe… "Hey Jazz." Valerie called. The older woman looked up, and Valerie waved her over.

Her brows were furrowed with concern as she walked over. "Is everything alright Valerie?"

Valerie nodded. "Everything's fine. I'm just… paranoid, you know? I'm all for trying to trust Hayes, but I've always trusted my gut about these sorts of things." She handed Jazz a slip of paper. "This is Laura Brannon's number. She's the only GiW that I genuinely trust. I want you to have it. Just in case."

Jazz blinked, looking down at the number in her hand. She looked back up at Valerie. "What are you worried might happen?" The question was genuine.

Valerie shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe I'm just trying to cover all my bases. Maybe I'm being too suspicious. But I'll sleep better this way."

Jazz nodded and pocketed the paper.

* * *

Valerie and Sam weren't a bad team.

Both women were incredibly sharp, so they linked the clues to a ghost with little issue. Sam also seemed to understand that Valerie was a good enough hunter to warrant little help from her when it came to engaging, which meant that Valerie was able to attack quickly and efficiently while Sam waited patiently with the thermos.

"Nice shot." Sam said as she uncapped the thermos in her hand. She aimed it at the weakened ghost and fired, sucking it up with ease.

Valerie grinned. "Thanks. You're good support." The duo had cornered their target effortlessly in the old, shut-down furniture shop, using their Fenton Tech goggles to see through the layers of dust.

"Thank you." She lifted her hand and activated her COM. "Hey Jazz, I think me and Val are just about done on our half. Any word on how the guys are doing?"

"I think they're close, but they would be making more progress if they would quit with the small talk."

Sam snorted. "Tucker and Danny? Shutting up? As if. We'll just head to the rendezvous point." They had set it to be the hill overlooking Amity.

"Sounds good. Great work out there ladies." And with that, Jazz beeped away.

Valerie stretched her shooting arm from her place on her board. "Sweet. I was worried this would end up taking all day."

"Yeah," Sam bit her bottom lip, and Valerie could tell the other woman was mentally debating whether or not to say something. She made her decision. "What do you want from Danny?" She winced even as the words came out of her mouth. "That sounded bad."

Valerie crossed her arms over her chest. "Yeah, it did. But I'm sure you meant it differently?" She raised a brow at the other woman, who had the decency to look embarrassed.

"I just meant… Look, I don't presume to know what your relationship has become, but I know Danny. He's not going to take what you two have lightly, and neither should you." Sam wasn't one to back down from protecting her friends, even if she really wanted to create some sort of relationship with the other woman.

Valerie nodded. "Of course. I mean… It's been so long since we last saw each other and in just a week Danny has proven to me that he doesn't go halfway on the whole friend thing. The least I could do is give him the same."

Sam didn't know how much she trusted Valerie's word, but she genuinely seemed to want to try, if nothing else. That she could respect. Even though she and Danny weren't quite so attached at the hip, her opinion on these things  _mattered_. To Danny and to Valerie. She walked up to Valerie's board and extended a hand. "I'm sure you will. You ready?"

Valerie nodded, grabbing Sam's hand and helping her step onto her hoverboard. "Let's go. We should be there when the boys roll up so we can gloat about what better hunters we are." She smirked.

Sam returned the look. "I can't believe it took us so long to become friends."

With that, the duo shot off towards the park. As they approached the grassy area, both women took note of the lack of people.

"It's a really nice day," Sam commented, "Usually the place is packed when the weather is like this."

Valerie nodded, skin prickling and muscles tensing as her instincts set her to high alert. "I know. Do you think there's another ghost?" Even before ghosts manifested their physical form, humans could instinctually tell when they are near. As hunters, both women knew to look out for drops in temperature or the feeling that something is watching you. Valerie glanced down at her Ecto-Scanner, which remained quiet.

Sam took note of the devices silence too. "Well, if there is, our best bet would be to head to the hill anyway. High ground is always an advantage."

Valerie flew them up the hill, where Sam immediately hopped down from her board. She looked around while Valerie flew up a little higher, looking around for any signs of a ghostly presence. Sam raised her hand to activate her COM link to Jazz when Valerie saw the space behind her fizzle strangely.

"Sam!" Valerie called out, already angling her board towards Sam as the ghost behind her grabbed her roughly before yanking her arms behind her back.

Sam immediately began struggling before suddenly going limp in the invisible being's grasp. Valerie grabbed her pistol, aiming it at the space behind Sam.

"Show yourself ghost!" She cocked her gun.

Upon her command, the figure slowly began to appear. She almost dropped her gun at the sight of its pristine white suit. "What the Hell?" She breathed.

Another Guy in White appeared behind her, followed by another to her left, then her right. Finally, Hayes appeared right in front of her. She narrowed her eyes at him, aiming her gun, even though she knew it would have little effect on a non-ectoplasmic entity.

He raised his hands in placating gesture, though his smirk revealed his undaunted state. "Now, now Valerie. No need for weaponry." She made no move to drop her gun, though her eyes burned with angry tears. "Do you like the tech? We've managed to engineer cloaking technology by studying what allows ghosts to become invisible. And while we're at it I might as well inform you that we're blocking your COM frequency."

Valerie remained silent.

"Well then, I suppose you have no other back up plans. I suppose now is the time for you to meet my new friend." He nodded to the man next to him, who pulled out a thermos. He flicked a switch to reverse the beam and uncapped it, releasing its sole captive.

Valerie switched her aim to the ghost, who simply stared at her. Well, the best approximation of staring it could manage. He wore a simple red robe with the hood pulled up. The robe looked like it was meant to be formal, but the ends were tattered and torn. Valerie couldn't tell if it had a face or not, because all she could see under the hood was pitch black and two glowing red eyes.

After a tense stare down, it spoke. "Hello, child. I… I apologize for this."

Valerie felt a dull thrum begin in the back of her head. She immediately recognized it as the same feeling from a couple days ago. _This_  must've been her invisible attacker. She felt herself grow angry at the thought. Furious even. Her jaw worked painfully as her lips twisted back into a snarl.

Her assailant flew up towards her, but she was so tense that she found herself unable to move. "You must understand, it was this in return for my freedom."

She couldn't respond, only stare as her vision bled red.

"So Valerie," Hayes began, looking smug, "I was wondering what you had come up with in terms of stopping Daniel."

"Nothing," Valerie spat, "Absolutely nothing. Did you think pissing me off would get me to tell you how to hurt him?"

Hayes chuckled. "Not at all. I was just wondering what you had come up with. Of course, it sounds to me like you haven't thought of anything." He shook his head. "And to think I brought you here to help  _me_. Luckily, I brought a little something for you." He unclipped a gun from his belt. A magenta pink fluid sloshed in the chamber. "You ever hear of Blood Blossoms Valerie?"

"No!" Valerie called out, her fear winning out over the blinding fury for just a moment.

Hayes held the gun up to her. "Go ahead and give her a target, Mercy."

The ghost in front of her gave her one last apologetic look before her brain was flooded with images of Danny, both in his human and ghost form. All of her fury leaped at the direction, and the only thing she was sure of in that moment was that she wanted to destroy Danny Phantom.

* * *

"Yeah. Yeah Jazz I know. What? They're done? They've been done? No way, how long?"

Tucker looked over at Danny at the sound of his incredulous voice. His friend was floating a few feet off the ground as he spoke to his sister. The duo had just finished hunting down their last ghost and had called Jazz to let her know.

"And hey, could you guys let me know when you see them? Their COMs are malfunctioning." She asked, sounding a little concerned.

Danny frowned. "Both of them? That's… That's really weird." He waved Tucker over, grabbing him and lifting him from under his arms as he began flying to their rendezvous point.

Tucker grumbled at the surprise and the rough treatment. "What's going on?"

Danny couldn't ignore the worry in the pit of his stomach. "Val and Sam's COMs are both out. I think something might be wrong." He flew a little faster, frustrated that he couldn't use his full speed while he had Tucker. "Jazz, are you still there?" Danny asked as he saw the park growing nearer and nearer.

"I am. What's going on?" He could hear the worry in her voice. "Do you need back up?"

Danny shook his head. "No, I don't… What the Hell?"

Tucker gaped at the scene before him. "Is that…?"

"The Guys in White." Danny finished, voice angry as he realized exactly what this meant.

"The… in White? Dan… What's… on?" Jazz's voice cut in and out as Danny approached the scene.

One of the men in a white uniform turned and pointed at him as he flew. He prepared to set Tucker down so he could fight properly when his friend went limp in his grasp. He looked down.

"Tucker!" Sure enough his best friend was unconscious. He lowered them both to the ground and set his body down gently, immediately noticing the dart in his neck. He paled as he pulled it out and felt for a pulse, sighing in relief when he felt a heartbeat. "I'll be back Tuck."

He shot back into the sky, eyes glowing a furious green. He flew to the gaggle of Guys in White, who only watched him with varying degrees of disinterest. At the center of it all was Hayes, holding a gun up to Valerie, who was breathing heavily, and an unfamiliar ghost, holding a hand next to her face.

Hayes looked over to him. "Daniel," He said with a smile, "Just in time."

With that, the other ghost disappeared, and Valerie finally looked over to him. Her red eyes were angry in a way he hadn't seen in years. She raised the blaster in her hands towards him. "Phantom." She growled out.

He raised his arms. "Val?"

Hayes chuckled. "Here Valerie, I think you'll like this weapon a whole lot more."

Danny's eyes widened as he recognized the Blood Blossom fluid in the barrel. "Valerie, don't!"

She reached down and took the weapon into her hands.


	12. Chapter 12

Danny paled as Valerie aimed the gun at him. He hoped he could see some sort of regret or resistance in her eyes, but no such luck. He couldn't worry about her for long, however, because he was currently the only one looking down the barrel of a lethal weapon.

With that thought, he shot off. He could hear her following, but he knew she'd never be able to catch him, not to mention the gun only had one round. She only had one shot. He turned, looking back at her though never slowing. She had activated her full mask – something she hadn't done since they had worked out all their issues – and something about that sent a chill down his spine.

"Valerie!" He called, glancing over his shoulder for a moment to make sure he wasn't about to run into anything. Bad idea. When he looked back, Valerie had gained on him, steadfast in her pursuit. "Valerie I don't know what he did to you but you have to fight it!"

He took them weaving through buildings, trying to direct them back towards the deserted park. Citizens gaped up at their heroes, unused to seeing them chasing each other.

"Just stop Danny. You can't escape this forever. You can't ruin my life and expect me to forgive you." Valerie's voice was cold - detached - as she spoke through the speaker in her helmet that amplified her words.

Danny shook his head. "I know Valerie! I know. We've talked about this. Please, please fight this. I'll do whatever it takes to get you back!" He saw the park in the distance and breathed a sigh of relief.

Valerie was silent for a moment. "Maybe I don't want to be back. Maybe I  _want_  to be angry. Maybe I  _want_  to kill you." Her foot shifted on her board.

Danny's eyes widened as he recalled the movement.

" _I guess I'll just have to make you." She said with a snarl. Her ambient energy flared around her, glowing brighter than he had ever seen it. He refused to let himself feel fear as she began flying towards him. He moved his foot slightly, readying himself._

_When she was moments away from knocking him clean off his board, he used his foot to active his most recent upgrade. The beam of light stopped Valerie in her tracks, freezing her completely. Her eyes flashed dangerously when she realized she couldn't move. Danny knew his little trick wouldn't last much longer. He'd have to do it, and he'd have to do it now._

He didn't have the time to hope that the location of the tractor beam matched up to his dream as he directed hot ectoplasm into his hand and fired it at Valerie's board. He heard her yelp at the heat so close to her foot as her board spun from the force of his attack.

He watched, muscles tensed as he fought the urge to go help her. She steadied herself quickly enough, glancing down at the char marks on her board. Her mask disengaged and she looked up at him with wild, angry red eyes.

"How did you know? I never did show you where your parents put this!" She stood straight suddenly, eyes blinking as her brain worked. "Wait… Your parents… They told you!" She pointed an accusing finger at him, red eyes flashing. "Of course they would! They would sacrifice mankind for their precious boy."

Danny frowned, holding up his hands in what he hoped to be a placating fashion. "What? No, Val, it wasn't that at all!"

Well," She smirked darkly, "Not me. If no one else will do what it takes to keep us all safe, I'll just have to do it myself."

Danny braced himself to make a speedy escape when Valerie reached down to press a button on the side of her boot. He cocked his head, confused, as she did the same to the other. She never released her hold on her gun as she did, nor did she look away from him.

"You ever wonder how I stay on my board? I mean, I have good balance but I'm only human, of course."

"Val…" Danny watched her, brows furrowed.

"It's my boots, actually. The bottom have this conductive metal coating and there's this electric current running through it that makes the whole situation act kind of like an electromagnet with the board, but it's only really activated when the board tilts or if I get too close to the edge." As if to demonstrate, she eased herself closer to one side of her board. The board began whirring as its engines and stabilizers kept it from tilting too far. "I can turn the magnets off, of course."

"What are you doing?" Danny's voice was tight. He already knew.

"You have two options, Phantom. Save me, or save yourself." And with that, she allowed herself to fall forward.

Danny didn't have to think. Which was, of course, exactly what she was counting on. He flew to catch up with her falling form, noting how she had closed her eyes. Even when under the influence of some evil ghost, she wasn't sure he'd care enough to save her.

He did, of course. He always would. He flew under her, catching her and holding her in his arms, bridal style. She blinked her eyes open, immediately putting the barrel of the gun to his chest, right above his core.

He stared down at her. She stared back. Time felt slow. The world felt quiet.

"You can fight this Valerie."

She shook her head and he noticed tears at the edge of her eyes. Her irises were still red, but they weren't glowing anymore. "I can't. I can't be free until I get my revenge." And with that, she pulled the trigger.

Time caught up. Fast. Valerie felt her mind clear at the same moment Danny's arms tensed where they held her. She caught a glimpse of his face, his features twisted in agony, before the two hit the ground hard. Valerie gasped as the air was knocked out of her, rolling a couple times with the force of the landing.

Her head hurt. She didn't know if she had hit it or if it was left over from the recent attack on her mind. She rolled to sit up, noting the soft grass beneath her. This area was over-grown. Danny had tried to give them a soft landing.

She gasped, looking over her shoulder. Danny was lying in the grass, body spasming and eyes wide as he panted.

"Danny!" She crawled over to him, pulling his head and shoulders onto her lap. Her eyes locked onto his chest. "Oh no…" She pulled out the empty dart. She had done this. She remembered.

"Val?" Danny's voice was soft, shaky. Magenta glowed as it creeped in veiny patterns from the origin right above his core.

She nodded. "I'm sorry Danny. Shit I'm… I can… I can help. Let me just…" She reached to pull her phone from her side pouch.

"No you don't." Hayes voice cut through her panicked haze like a knife.

She looked up to see him walking calmly towards them, smirk on his face and gun in his hand.

"Hands up, Valerie. You've lost."

Valerie felt her face heat as angry tears slid down her cheeks. "No! At least let him die in the arms of someone who loves him!"

Hayes shrugged. "Sure, but no funny moves." His gun never wavered from its aim. "Though it might not be much comfort, seeing as it's also the arms of his murderer."

Valerie wanted so badly to appear strong in that moment, but the timing of the words and the truth of them as she held the shaking body of her friend would never allow her. She could only choke on a sob and turn her attention back to Danny.

"He's right," She whispered to him, tears falling down her cheeks, "This was my fault. I'm so sorry. I try so hard to be good to you but I always fall short."

Danny shook his head as best he could. "It… Not your gun…"

"Does that matter?" She watched as the magenta poison continued to spread.

He smiled feebly at her. "You don't… Have yours… I was right."

Valerie scoffed. "You're crazy." She hugged him as tight as she dared. "You're absolutely nuts. I'm sorry." Fresh tears began to fall.

Danny wanted so badly to comfort her, but he couldn't. He couldn't move, he couldn't think. The only thing he had keeping him in the present moment was the pain. He wanted to be rid of it, but not if that meant he couldn't stay with her just a little bit longer. She had worked miracles on his life before. Maybe she would again.

Valerie watched as the magenta spread further and further. There was nothing left she could do. They had used up all their luck.

"Valerie!"

And then Laura Brannon became the hero.

Hayes wasn't a fool. "Apprehend her!"

Two bulky guards lumbered towards Laura, who showed no signs of slowing. When she was close enough, she leapt into their waiting grip, but not before launching the ecto-gun in her hands towards Valerie. The guards had her, already pulling her arms behind her back and securing her wrists together with a zip tie.

It didn't matter though. Valerie leaned forward, almost tossing Danny from her lap to catch the gun. Upon closer inspection, she realized it wasn't a regular ecto-gun. It was clearly for injection, and she could see a glowing green liquid in the barrel. It looked like ectoplasm, but much, much brighter.

She didn't know for sure what it was, but she didn't have the time to care. She administered the shot directly into his core, right near the poisoned wound. Bright green raced down the same channels as the previous fluid, clearing it and replacing it with its own bright hue as it went.

Danny gasped, eyes flaring sharply green before he grabbed hold of Valerie and hugged her tight to his body. She felt a harsh cold flare from him - icy hot – before the feeling of a cold glass of water being poured over her head reminded her of Danny's ghostly ability.

She watched bullets fly towards them through his intangible shoulder and shivered when they flew past the area where they were sitting. She felt warmth return to her limbs and watched as Danny flew out from under her, rising above them all and glaring at Hayes with furiously glowing eyes.

Hayes didn't wither under the stare. Danny wasn't intimidated. He could take them all. He just wasn't so sure he wanted Valerie to see.

" _Please_  don't make me fight you Hayes; I'm so pissed right now I feel like I could level this park, and I really,  _really_  don't want to do that." His voice rumbled in his chest, and Valerie could hear an echo in his voice. It was unsettling, how much he felt and looked like a full ghost in that moment. And yet, she could feel the thrill in her chest. How risky it was of her to gain the affection of something so dangerous.

She wondered if this excitement was what drew him to her.

Hayes glared. "Would you? Would you be willing to risk everyone seeing you for what you truly are? What about her?" He motioned towards Valerie. "She's clearly put all of her faith into your humanity. Are you willing to prove her wrong?"

Valerie watched him hesitate for a moment before adding her two cents. "I know what he is." She promised, drawing the attention of all who were present. "I've always known."

Hayes scoffed at her, once again raising his weapon towards Danny. "We'll see."

Danny moved to create a shield when a shot rang out. Danny frowned. It didn't sound like a gun. He looked down a Hayes, who had dropped to a knee. He could see a severe ectoplasm burn right above Hayes's knee. He looked at Valerie, who was still aiming her ecto-gun.

The other GiW seemed to shake off their shock a moment later, angry gazes turning to Valerie. Danny lowered himself between them, hands glowing and providing a silent threat. The remaining agents weren't as bold as Hayes and immediately dropped their weapons, hands raised in surrender.

Danny lowered himself fully to the ground, offering a hand to Valerie upon landing. She took the offer and rose to stand next to him. He noticed her vacant expression, eyebrows furrowing as he gently grabbed her arm and tugged her a little closer.

"Hey, are you alright?" He asked her. She remained silent. "Val? How did you get that gun to do that?"

She looked down at the weapon in her hands, directing his gaze to the damage. He recognized the remains of the safety system that regulated the heat of the ecto-plasm. "It broke when we fell." She whispered.

He shook his head, amazed but relieved at their luck. "We need to take care of these guys Val." He walked over to Hayes, who was making the attempt to look like he wasn't in pain. Danny pulled a pair of Fenton Cuffs from his boot and slapped them on the man's wrists. "What an interesting turn of events, huh Hayes?" He smirked coldly. "Here I was thinking you'd be the one arresting me one day."

"I wouldn't have arrested you," Hayes replied, "I would've destroyed you."

Danny just rolled his eyes. He glanced up at Valerie, who still hadn't moved. His worry returned. "Hey, can you get Laura free while I cuff these other guys?"

She nodded, still silent. Danny watched her move as he did his own tasks. He noticed her empty look and stiff posture. Finally, when he was done, he walked over to the two women. Laura was rubbing her freed wrists and speaking softly to Valerie.

"Are you alright? Valerie? It's okay. Jasmine called me. I had the serum because  _you_  asked me to make it. You did it. You saved him."

Valerie shook her head furiously at that. "I'm… I'm going home."

Laura and Danny watched her hail her board and climb on before speeding away.


	13. Chapter 13

Everything was chaotic after Valerie left.

Danny's next move had been to check on Sam and Tucker, and he was relieved to find that aside from being tranquilized, they were fine. The duo immediately began asking him questions upon their awakening, none of which he was able to answer before the arrival of Jazz and the police.

The Amity Park Police Department were irritated that Valerie hadn't stuck around for questioning, but agreed to take her statement later after Jazz insisted the other woman was probably in no mental state to be interrogated right then.

Danny was tempted to watch Hayes get officially arrested, but something else was nagging at him more. He found Laura watching the whole scene from a little ways away. She was sitting, legs pulled up to her chest. He sat down next to her.

Danny broke the silence. "She asked you for a serum?"

Laura blinked up at him. "You didn't know? She told me you two agreed that you should have one."

Danny shook his head, brow furrowed. "No, I didn't. _I_  wanted a weapon."

"What?" Laura snapped, glaring at him.

Danny shrugged. "Yeah. I… I asked her to carry the only weapon that could kill me."

"I thought she wanted the antidote in case you ever encountered Blood Blossoms in the wild." She crossed her arms, clearly upset at being deceived.

Danny shook his head. "I guess… She wanted a way out. I guess she  _didn't_  trust herself."

"That's a lot to put on one person. And for what it's worth, you're very lucky. Valerie only called yesterday. I had all the research but that cure was incredibly rudimentary and experimental. I hadn't even had a chance to test that stuff. Not to mention how lucky you are that Jasmine thought to call."

He blinked at her. "How did Jazz get your number?"

"Valerie." Jazz answered as she walked up on the duo. "Thanks Laura, for saving his life." She squatted down so she could rest a hand on the woman's shoulder.

Laura smiled. "No problem. Though I'm not sure I should take the credit. It sounds to me like Valerie was the one who had the plan."

Danny bit his lip at that. "I had no idea she's been doing all this. How did she know to set this up?"

"That's the thing," Jazz stood, looking down at her brother with her arms crossed over her chest, "She didn't. You gave her half a plan Danny. You can't blame her for taking extra precautions. Especially since you didn't tell anyone else about this crazy idea of yours."

"I, I guess I thought it was all under control. How did you even know to bring the serum?"

Laura shrugged. "Jasmine only told me that there was something going on in the park. She knew the GiW was involved and it didn't sound good, and she called because Valerie mentioned I was the only one in the GiW she trusted. It was lucky I grabbed the serum. I just thought that since Valerie was involved and she had  _just_  asked for the research… I don't know."

Jazz shook her head. "How did she see this coming?"

"I don't think she did." Danny admitted. The  _chance_  of it all left the group in silence, all incredibly thankful that it had worked out the way it had.

Jazz hummed. "Look, we could be here all day discussing how lucky it was that she'd already covered her bases. Danny, you need to go talk to her."

Danny nodded. "I know." He leapt into the air, ready to rush over to her apartment. Jazz grabbed his ankle.

"Oh no you don't.  _Tomorrow_. Give her some time to deal with everything, yeah?" Her tone and the hand on her hip left no room for arguing.

Danny sighed, floating back onto the ground. "Yeah, tomorrow." He gazed off in the direction of her home before reaching down and offering Laura a hand.

"Let's go finish talking to the police then."

* * *

Danny couldn't sleep.

He huffed in frustration, opening his eyes and staring at the glowing green numbers on his alarm clock. 3:14 am. He grabbed his phone on the bedside table, working it in his hands. Would she be up?

No, of course not. It was 3 am. Would she be angry if he woke her up?

Maybe. After all, she saved his life today. She probably could use some rest after all of that.

He just desperately wanted to talk to her. Thank her. Apologize. Comfort her. Anything she needed from him. Mind made up, he unlocked his phone. He opened her name under his messages and started typing before her noticed the gray dots in the corner.

She  _was_  awake! And texting him. He cleared his message and was about to lock his phone when he paused. Instead, he just watched and waited. After what felt like years, her message came through.

_Hey. Are you up?_

A short message. He wondered how long it had sat there, waiting to be sent. He replied immediately.

_Yeah. I can't sleep._

He sent it, already sitting up in his bed as he waited for her response. He watched three gray dots bounce in the corner of the screen. He tried to wait, but he  _needed_  to see her.

_Could I come over so we can talk? Please?_

As he sent his text, her's came through.

_Could you… Maybe come over or something? I don't want to be alone._

He hopped out of bed, typing his reply.

_Yes!_

_Yeah._

Their responses came at the same time again. He was relieved at that. They seemed to be feeling the same way about everything, and above all, anxious to talk about it.

_I'll be there soon._

He responded again. He changed into his ghost form and slid his phone and key into his boots. With that, he phased through the wall out into the night air.

* * *

Valerie felt like an idiot.

She knew she should've held off on texting him. She had even sort of hoped he wouldn't be awake and wouldn't see her impulsive message until the morning. Of course he  _was_  awake, and on his way. She hadn't even had the time to figure out what she was going to say.

What  _do_  you say to someone you almost killed?

She'd have to figure it out quick though, because he would be there any minute. She felt the temperature of the room drop suddenly, sending a chill down her spine.

Sooner than a minute then.

He blinked back into the visible spectrum, staring at her from a few feet away. She returned the look, unable to think of anything to say. Even if she could, she wasn't sure she'd be able to talk past the lump in her throat.

She walked over to him, needing first and foremost to prove to herself that everything was fine. That he was whole. When she was close enough, she reached out to grab an arm. He let her pull it towards her, and felt her running her fingers up and down his veins before resting for a moment on his wrist.

He changed back into his human form, causing her to look up at him in surprise.

"My heartbeat is harder to find in my ghost form. My core works a little differently than my heart." He explained.

She didn't respond, only concentrated on the feeling of his heartbeat for a moment. Finally, she seemed satisfied and dropped his arm. "I'm sorry."

Danny blinked at her for a moment before chuckling. "What?"

Valerie frowned at him. "I'm sorry." She crossed her arms. "Look, I know I owe you a lot more than that but I couldn't think of what to say…"

"Hush, Val." He pulled her into a hug, which she returned with more gusto than he was expecting. "You don't have to say anything. I'm just genuinely glad we're both okay." He pulled away a little and smiled at her confused expression. "Which is due in large part to your planning ahead, so thanks for that."

She pushed herself away from him, noticing but not acknowledging the way his face fell when she did. "Wait, what?"

He nodded. "Yeah. Laura and Jazz filled me in. They didn't even realize you had made them part of your contingency plan. Luckily they're both smart as hell and figured what to do."

"So they told you everything?"

"Uh, yeah?" He shrugged. "Was I supposed to believe they just had everything they needed to save us lying around?"

Valerie shook her head. "You weren't supposed to know anything. I just… hated feeling like the weapon could become a situation that I couldn't get out of. You know I don't work like that."

He moved closer to her, wrapping her up into his arms again. "I know, and I'm sorry I asked you to." He gave her a gentle squeeze. "But we won the day. I think we both need to accept that and get some sleep." He began to pull away when she grabbed his arms, stopping him.

"Wait," She bit her lip, looking a little embarrassed but determined, "Can you stay? It might help me sleep."

He grinned down at her. "Sure. I just need some extra blankets and I'll sleep on the couch."

Valerie rolled her eyes. "Please. If I let you sleep in my bed with me you won't try anything funny, right?"

He blinked at the offer. "Of course not!" He promised.

She gave him a small grin before leading the way to her room.

* * *

Valerie almost wished she and Danny hadn't blown the truth about Hayes and his shady plans wide open.

Almost.

There was just so much  _paperwork_. She and Danny had gone to the APPD station the next morning so she could give her statement. Discussion was flying about court dates and testifying and wondering if a ghost  _could_  testify.

Everything had been non-stop. The duo just barely managed to get away for lunch. Danny suggested the Sam, Tucker, and Jazz meet them at Nasty Burger.

"So wait, you might not even get to say anything in court?" Tucker asked, although any concern was masked by his mouth full of food.

Sam peeled her eyes away from the disgusting sight. "If it makes everyone feel better, I'm still pretty sure we can muster an attempted murder charge."

Valerie huffed. "We  _should_ , but who knows. Not even to mention that Hayes and some of his guys might have enough to pin  _me_  down with attempted murder."

"It wouldn't work." He smirked at her, nudging her with a shoulder. "Phantom's already dead."

"What a dark loophole," Sam grinned, "I love it."

Jazz hummed. "That reminds me. Danny, you should try and talk to the ghost who did… Whatever that was to Valerie. Make sure there are no side-effects we should be worried about."

"I remember his name," Valerie chimed in, "Mercy."

Tucker snorted, prompting the rest of the table to fix him with a hard stare. "What? It's kind of funny. And ironic."

Valerie shook her head. "Believe it or not… I don't think he was actually a bad guy. He even apologized to me before... He mentioned that it was in the agreement for his freedom."

Danny nodded. "Well, I'll ask around about him. Finding ghosts without any sort of knowledge about them can be tricky though, so no promises."

Tucker took a loud sip from his drink. "Okay, so we have a plan, kind of. So what now? I mean, the trial is at least a week off."

Valerie shrugged. "Try and be normal, I guess. The GiW for this branch is getting a new director, so I might even still have my job when all is said and done."

"New director?" Danny asked, raising a brow at her.

She nodded. "Yup, that's all I know."

"Hmm. Can't wait to meet him." Sarcasm dripped from his words.

Valerie pursed her lips. "I thought you hated working with the GiW?"

Danny shrugged, swirling his drink with his straw as he avoided her gaze. "I do, but you work for them and that means I get to work with you, so…" Valerie smiled, angling her head downwards so she could hide her blush.

Sam shot Tucker a look at the interaction. He simply gave her a stupid grin back, eyebrows wiggling. Sam rolled her eyes and glanced over at Jazz, who was also clearly amused by the duo.

"So you guys," Sam asked, looking between her best friend and her newest friend, "Do you think you have everything handled here in Amity? Enough for us to leave?"

Valerie and Danny shared a smirk.

"I think we can handle it." He replied.

"But we'll be sure to call if we need the support." Valerie finished.

Jazz smiled at them. "It's settled then. Looks like the city is all yours again guys. How's it feel?"

Valerie answered for them. "It feels good."

* * *

Danny had been released for the day following lunch. There was still too much of a question as to whether or not his story could be used in a court of law, and the lawyers figured they'd might as well not waste his time.

He was quietly grateful, though he felt for Valerie. He gave her a sympathetic look as he walked out of his interrogation room. She stood from her place in the waiting room area.

"You free?" She asked.

He nodded. "Yeah. I'm going to see about finding Mercy. He doesn't have any way back into the Ghost Zone, so he's pretty stranded right now."

"Good news for us?" Valerie asked.

Danny shrugged. "Who knows? He's been quiet but it's barely been a day since everything went down. Anyway, I'm going to check the park."

"Okay," She looked past him at a lawyer who had stuck his head out of the room to stare at her impatiently, "Guess I'll be here. I'll text you when I'm done."

"Sounds good. Good luck in there." He gave her a little smile. She rolled her eyes but returned the look before walking past him into the room.

An idea formed in his brain. He couldn't do anything about it now, but he had time. With that thought, he left to go find his loose ghost.

* * *

Turned out finding Mercy wouldn't be a problem after all.

As a matter of fact, if Danny didn't know any better, he'd say that the ghost had been looking for  _him_. Mercy had clearly stayed near the park, wandering around the more deserted areas.

He was hard to see; Danny could only assume he didn't have enough energy to fully maintain his corporal form. If not for his ghost sense, he might have looked right past him.

He couldn't get a bead on the how the other ghost was feeling, since he didn't have a face even when he was fully powered up. Danny almost hoped for a fight. Just the sight of the ghost was enough to infuriate him. The ectoplasm in his hand burned in the most comforting way as he prepared for battle.

"You're back." Mercy's voice was soft, wispy.

Danny nodded stiffly. "I am. And I'm angry, for the record, so I really hope you have a good reason for still being here."

The other ghost's voice held no fear. "I have been waiting for you. I know anger like I know myself. I knew you'd want your revenge on me. I just had to wait."

"For a ghost whose power is wrath," Danny said, extinguishing the ectoplasm in his hand and crossing his arms, "You have an awfully calm way about you."

"I cannot help my power, certainly, but I understand after so many years the power of diplomacy as well." He paused. "I'll answer the question not yet asked: I have no ill will towards you or the Huntress. I did what I must for my freedom. I hope you can understand the sentiment."

Danny shrugged. "Sure. Still doesn't explain how Hayes caught you."

"He's a hunter. I'm a ghost. It should seem obvious, no?" The ghost's calm voice and vague answer was only managing to piss Danny off more.

"Cut the shit. I know those robes. You're council." He glanced down at said robes, noticing their state. "Or you were, anyway. You're too powerful for him to have easily caught you."

The ghost hummed. "I hadn't expected you to recognize the dress of the council. You've not interacted with them much, have you?"

Danny shook his head. "I saw a member once, when I was with Clockwork. Not to mention he never has kind words for them. Are you still a member?"

"No," the ghost admitted, "None of those I served with still sit on the council."

"Why?"

"We were voted out, peacefully, as it always goes. Our rule was not… We were perceived as weak. It was believed that power over emotion – as many of us had – ought to be a grand weapon in ensuring our continued existence. We were hesitant to use these powers, of course, because of our inability to control the affected party. Even in the case of Valerie, I had to plant seeds of anger aimed towards you, and it certainly wasn't guaranteed to work even then."

Danny furrowed his brows. "You don't have any offensive powers, do you? You can only fight through others." Mercy nodded. "That explains a lot." He sighed. "Look, I just need to know if there are any long-term effects to what you did to her."

Mercy shook his head. "No. And for your forgiveness I offer you my service." He paused, thinking for a moment. "I have a brother, one who can create feelings of intense love. Perhaps you could plant an emotion better suited to your desires in her mind…"

Danny drew back in disgust. "Absolutely not. Valerie can feel however she wants about me, but I want it to come from  _her_. Anger, love, whatever. I'm only asking you to leave us both alone."

The ghost nodded. "I can, certainly, if that is your wish."

"It is."

Mercy nodded once more. "I will leave your dimension then, and tell my siblings of your great kindness to me." He paused, staring at Danny for a moment. "Though I promise I will never act against you again, dear friend, I cannot guarantee that I am quite finished with you yet. Your character… It fascinates me so."

Danny rolled his eyes. "Yeah, sure. Just leave Valerie out if it, please."

"Of course. Until we cross paths again." Mercy bowed deeply before disappearing from the visible plane.

Danny frowned to himself. He had no idea what else the ghost might want from him later, but he  _knew_ that whatever it was wasn't going to be simple. With a sigh, he accepted the problem as one for another day, and flew off to meet Valerie at the station.

* * *

To Danny's surprise, Valerie was sitting in the waiting room when he entered. He walked over to her, immediately noticing how tense she was.

"What's wrong?" He asked, sitting in the chair next to her.

She rubbed her eyes before giving him a dull look. "The new director of Amity's GiW is here. He wants to meet us."

Danny groaned. "Please tell me you're kidding."

She shook her head. "Nope. He just ran to the bathroom. We've been waiting for you. He won't tell me anything, says he wants to talk to both of us at the same time. And he somehow charmed the police into letting use one of their empty interrogation rooms for some privacy."

"What? How the hell did he manage that?"

"I used to be a police officer before I was an agent for the Guys in White. I still have some old friends here, luckily."

Danny and Valerie jumped at the interjection, both looking up to the man standing before them.

He held out a hand. "My name's Ross Packard." When neither of them took it, he pulled it back, unphased by their hesitance. "We have much to discuss, if you two don't mind?"

Valerie and Danny shared a look. Saying no didn't seem like an option for them. They stood, following him to the private room.

They walked in and situated themselves in the cold metal fold – out chairs. They already had been in and out of the bland interrogation rooms all day, so they focused all their attention on the man before them.

"As I'm sure Valerie has told you, I have been chosen to take Hayes's place as Amity's director." He sighed. "I… I am sorry for what Hayes did to you both. He was once my partner, and he was always very intense, but I hadn't realized how far he would take everything."

Valerie frowned. "You were his partner? Were you…?"

"One of the twenty people at the pole? Yes." He watched Danny for a reaction.

Valerie did too. He looked calm enough, but Valerie knew calm was probably the furthest from what he was feeling.

Still, when he spoke his voice was even. "Okay. So is that what you wanted to discuss?"

Packard shook his head. "No, but I wanted us to go into this on the same page. That's all I want through this whole process." He leaned forward onto the table between them. "I can understand why you didn't trust Hayes. But I want you to trust me. I want to have your backs."

The duo shared another look, but didn't reply. Packard didn't appear frustrated.

"Which is why I want you two to rest up for a few days. I'll see both of you on Wednesday in uniform for a 9-5 shift." He stood to his full height, crossing his arms.

Danny snorted. "Cute, but I don't work for the Guys. Hayes had Phantom as a consultant."

"Which is why he was able to go behind your back so easily. If you want  _real_  transparency, you need a  _real_  job with us so I can grant you _real_  clearance."

Valerie looked at Danny, who was quickly beginning to show his irritation. She placed a hand on his forearm, reminding him she was there. "We're not exactly 9-5 type people."

"I know," Packard assured them, "And I have no intention for setting either of you up with that sort of schedule. I need you here on Wednesday because we will be going through Hayes's desk, talking to everyone, seeing what he had going on around there."

Danny hummed. "Okay. But I still don't understand why you want me as an employee."

"I can't give this sort of intel to some stranger. Daniel Fenton has no affiliation with us. Daniel Phantom is a ghost and can't be put on payroll. I'm happy to be transparent with both of you, but this is how we have to do it."

Valerie shrugged. "I mean, I already work for the Guys. I'm willing to give this a shot."

Danny bit his lip. "I'll hate it, you know? Wearing that fucking uniform after everything this organization has done to me and my family," He took a deep breath, "But I'll do it."

Packard smiled at that. "I won't let you regret it. I have no intention of doing you any harm, and I hope this is the first step to creating an allegiance that you two can trust." He walked towards the door. "I'll see you Wednesday." And with that, he left.

* * *

Danny and Valerie's trip back to FentonWorks was quiet. Upon arrival, the duo immediately made their way to the couch, flopping onto it together. Valerie sighed heavily.

"That sucked." She looked over at Danny, who looked just as tired as she felt. "This whole day has sucked."

He nodded, eyes falling shut as he eased further into the couch. "It has." He opened his eyes again, looking over and smiling at her. "I sure you didn't miss all of this fun stuff."

She snorted. "No, but it's alright. I feel like things will be okay. Or we'll be okay, at least."

He sat up, turning up to her more fully. "Hey."

Valerie cocked a brow and smirked at him. "Hey."

"Would you," He paused, fidgeting with his hands, "Would you want to go on a date with me sometime?"

Valerie blinked. "You want to… date me again?"

"I mean, yeah." He smiled. "You're incredible. You always have been. We weren't ready then but… I mean you totally don't have to I just thought… I don't know."

She hummed in thought. "Yeah. Yeah I would love to go on a date with you."

His eyes widened. "Really?"

Valerie nodded. "Yeah, you dork," She paused as she toyed with a thought, "But I do want to know: do I have to wait until then to kiss you or…?"

Danny laughed, pulling her closer to him. "Of course not." He didn't waste any time in pulling her close and kissing her soundly. They separated after a moment, both grinning.

"You've gotten better." Valerie quipped.

Danny blinked at her. "What?!"

She shrugged, pecking his lips again. "Since last time we did this."

"I was 14! No one is good at kissing when they're 14!"

Valerie hummed. "Well what about me? Did you think I was good when we were 14?"

"I mean," He looked away, "…Yeah," he admitted with a sigh. Valerie laughed, prompting him to give her a pitiful look as he pouted. "Are you still going to be mean to me while we're dating?"

Valerie nodded. "Absolutely." She leaned him to kiss him again, and he reciprocated with enthusiasm.

"I can't wait." He joked as he pulled away again.

"Me either."

The duo settled into a comfortable silence. They adjusted, laying down on the couch and finally relaxing fully as they drifted to sleep.


End file.
